God’s Bottle

You have noted my lamentation,; put my tears into your bottle…” Psalm 56:8

It is strongly doubtful God has a bottle, at least a physical one. But shall we imagine there is such an item with the divine…how many tears would be in your bottle? I have cried rivers of tears during my sixty-odd years of life, so it is fathomable to me this bottle God holds is quite large. But it’s not just the bottle, it’s also the lamentation. We have been through over a year of lamenting, a year of tears during this pandemic. Not solely for the dead or the dying; I would imagine health care workers, those doctors and nurses who work 18-24 hour shifts during a regular week also have rivers of tears that flow. But they also have the lament. The cries of anguish over yet another patient, another co-worker, another family member.

And it’s not only the health care workers, but the unemployed, the families living in their cars, the undocumented workers with no health insurance, the thousand upon thousand who lament every day. ‘You have noted my lamentation…’ I believe God notes these lamentations because God also laments, cries out in anguish over the human beings who are so beloved, so cherished by God. If you think God does not take notice, think again. Because when Jesus died on that cross, God was also crucified, and God cried out in anguish over the death of such a beloved. Each of us is God’s beloved as well, so pour out those tears, cry out the lament. God knows.