When times are difficult, when we are under pressure from burdens or simply experiencing sadness… Instead of letting concerns build in our minds, Scripture says to pour them out:
“Rise during the night and cry out. Pour out your hearts like water to the Lord…” [Lamentations 2:19]
‘Venting’ them to other people is NOT the same as ‘pouring them out’ to God.
If we could imagine our concerns collecting like drops of water… then praying is pouring out our concerns to God. Worrying holds onto them and watches to see if they flood into more areas of our lives…
Said another way… Prayer abates our thoughts and emotions… Worry dams them up, pools them – which causes the pressure we feel.
Spoken prayers greatly help empty the heart… But today’s lack of quiet and privacy can make that challenging.
Another way people emptied their cares was in writing out their anxious thoughts. Symbolic of taking them out of the mind (we may say ‘getting them off our chest’) by placing them down on paper – giving each away to God.
Either way we choose, God thinks it’s important to pour them out…
Being ‘instant in prayer’ (Rom. 12:12) doesn’t require a pen and paper… But it is VERY satisfying to cross-off written cares as God helps resolve them! So, we like to speak them and write them.
Knowing HOW to drain our sinking thoughts is a great way to build confidence in God and keep our lives buoyant… and the good use of a pen filled with ink can help us alleviate eyes filled with tears.
– ANOTHEN