Analogies are great but obviously don't work for everyone, even in similar situations. The tsunami picture was something I couldn't have initially articulated as I was too busy drowning! When you are busy using all your energy for survival, reflection doesn't come easily. I had the picture some years later when praying for a young lady whose Dad had suddenly passed away. I am not sure how much it helped her but it has helped me for years.

I love that the Bible is packed with raw humanity. Yet thankfully we also see God at work in us and through us. One of the places we see dramatic emotions expressed is in the Psalms. David doesn't hold back at all. He processes the highs and lows, the joys and sorrows, the contentment and desperation. In experiencing and articulating all these emotions, he always comes round to the fact that God is still good even though living in this world is hard! 

I was talking to a friend recently who has experienced the loss of her health in recent years. She said that when she was younger she couldn't understand why so many people picked Psalm 23 to be read at funerals.  "Now," she said, "having gone through treatment for cancer, I totally get it! Psalm 23 sums up life! We have to go through valleys and even the shadow of death but God is always with us. We are never alone."

The Good Shepherd - David’s poetic praise to God

Maybe you haven't had a huge loss but you are feeling sad and low. Maybe you are disappointed and experiencing the constant small losses that this season has brought many of us. Maybe you are anxious and afraid. Maybe you feel unsure of the future or are standing on the edge of life changing. Maybe you are not overwhelmed by a tsunami but you feel like you have been camping for a week in the rain

and

you

just

can't

get

dry.

Don't know where to start? How about you don't start with you? Why not ask God how He would describe how you are feeling? Ask God what He would like to say to you.

If that seems daunting or if you just have no words, use someone else's. David processes all of life, his hardest thoughts and ugliest feelings, yet inevitably returns to worshipping God.

It can also work in reverse. If we just don't know where to start with ourselves and what we are going through, we can worship. Remembering who God is and worshipping Him helps us to recognise our feelings and untangle our thoughts. Why not listen to our worship group singing Waymaker? Don't sing (at least the first time round) just use the words like a prayer in your head. 

Or try the Breath Prayer below. You pray the first phrase of each line, “I receive…” while slowly breathing in, and the second phrase, “release my…” while slowly breathing out.

Whichever approach works for you, remember that God can handle your emotions, even the ugly ones. He isn't afraid of them or just waiting for us to get over it but He is in the feelings with us. He is interested in us. God loves us with a never-ending, never-giving-up love. As you work through your feelings with Him, may you draw ever closer to Him.