We Christians can be prone to spiritual bypass. We say things like:
“God has a plan”
“Everything happens for a reason”
“God won’t give you more than you can handle”
“This is just my/your cross to bear”
Or we try to minimize the suffering with some toxic positivity. We say or hear things like:
“Choose joy”
“At least you’re still alive”
“Others have it worse”
“All things work together for good”
In contrast, our scripture invites us to sit with challenging emotions, to give voice to grief and sorrow, pain and suffering, confusion and anger, hopelessness and discouragement. This Sunday we looked at Habakuk's lament as he cries out to God about all the injustice, violence, and oppression he sees in his world.