This Christmas will be unlike any other in our lifetime. The rhythms of our lives have been shaken up. From holidays to seasonal events, through to worship in person or the simple act of meeting in a group—all have been upturned.

One of the challenges of this period is coping with the unending changes imposed on us. Times like this make it hard to plan, and it can be difficult to know what we can hope for. The structures and rhythms of our lives have changed and have not yet been replaced by anything permanent or familiar.

Resilience, needed now more than ever, comes from some of the least expected sources.

An Echo of Exile

God’s people experienced displacement throughout the Bible. 2020’s removal of choices and accompanying disruption creates an echo of exile.

Choices are reduced. We feel oppressed by external constraints and lack the freedom we once had.

Although not geographical exiles, we feel exiled from our normal life.

Losses

Losses we have encountered this year may have been life-changing. We may have lost our livelihood, or been forced to change jobs.

We faced the loss of
a life with spontaneity.
things happening with ease.
a life without low-level anxiety.
a stable mood.

We miss times when we don’t feel exhausted.

Despite your losses, and even because of them, you can gain resilience through lament.

Lament

Lament is a biblical practice involving an expression of grief that offers us a way of navigating difficult experiences. One-third of the Psalms express lament.

Reading through the Psalms, God’s people call on Him, reminding Him of His character and His promises. Lament occurs in the context of an ongoing relationship. Even when there is despair, there is the expectation that God is present. God may seem distant, but He is dependable and true. The psalmists allow themselves to sit with their emotions and express them. Resilience arises from reflective experiences.

In an article appearing earlier this year in Time Magazine, N.T. Wright reflected on lament in the context of the pandemic:

“It is no part of the Christian vocation, then, to be able to explain what’s happening and why. In fact, it is part of the Christian vocation not to be able to explain—and to lament instead. As the Spirit laments within us, so we become, even in our self-isolation, small shrines where the presence and healing love of God can dwell.”

Resilience is not reliant on the comfort of explanations but the courage from God’s presence in the deepest dark.

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