It’s okay to cry and it’s certainly okay to cry out to God. In Psalm 142, David, a powerful leader, a king, a father, a fighter and psalmist, a man described as one after God’s own heart, cries out to God: unashamed, sincere, and pure. 

Listen to the full audio reading of Psalm 142 here: (coming soon)

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I think one of the biggest harms we inflict on ourselves is to deny our need to cry. Bottling or ignoring our emotions without letting them out in a healthy way only deepens the wounds. 

David’s vulnerability and honesty is unmatched. Little did he know that more than 2,000 years later the Psalms he wrote, the prayers he sang would resonate and be understood by millions. He wrote with so much passion. He wasn’t afraid to bear his soul, to present himself as a sinner in need of a savior. 

Of all the books in the bible, the Book of Psalm stands out to me the most. I think this because of its emotional, poetic nature. I think David is known as a man after God’s own heart because he was willing – in joy, in pain, in tears, or dancing – to seek after God. 

We may suppress our emotions because of fear, culture, stereotypes, and stigmas. We often hear people say things like, “toughen up,” or “that’s light,” meaning it isn’t that serious.  

Meanwhile, the hurt individual continues carrying this weight, burden, distress or whatever it is and it can start eating them up inside. They may not realize how their body and mental health can start deteriorating simply because they’re keeping all these emotions inside of them. No one should have to suffer in silence.

David is transparent, frank and straightforward with God. His cry went something like this, 

“I am making my supplication,” (verse 1).

“I’m complaining about this; here is what troubles me God,” (verse 2).

“I am overwhelmed by this.” (verse 3).

It’s nice to be understood by others. I can recall a few times when native Koreans sympathize with me whenever I share something that is bothering me about living in Korea. It’s nice when they try to see things from my point of view. But that won’t always be the case.

David acknowledges in verse 4 that, “there was no man that would know me.… no man cared for my soul.” Sometimes it may feel like no one understands what you’re feeling or going through. To feel like no one cares about you can be even harder to bear. 

I like what David says next, “Thou art my refuge and my portion in the land of the living,” (verse 5). In the Psalm we can see that David is really going through it. Even though he professes what God means to him, speaks truth into existence, he still feels down and out. 

We can say all the positive things, believe in hope and faith but our current situation says otherwise. That shouldn’t stop us from believing in the promises of God. Yet, David doesn’t hide that fact that he’s not feeling his best, “bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name,” (verse 7).

It’s this realness and authenticity that makes David the legendary psalmist and musician: being real. 

What I love the most about this Psalm is David is real with God. Not to say that we should be fake with others. He bares his deepest emotions with God, because he believes that God is ultimately the only one who can do something transformative about them. This also isn’t to say we shouldn’t share our pains with trusted family, friends and health professionals eg. therapist. These relationships play a pivotal role in our total wellbeing. David too wasn’t without numerous counselors and family.

There is a limit to what human beings can give us. We can see even in ourselves how limited we are at times when helping the people in our lives. Nevertheless, we should still do what is in our capacity to help others. David knows he can cry out to God any day, any time, no matter how far he falls or sins. Crying out to God can also be cathartic. Releasing the deeply felt emotions to our Father in heaven may loosen the emotional hold it has on us.  

Despite all the hurt and weakness that David feels, he ends the Psalm in confidence, “the righteous shall compass me about; for thou shalt deal bountifully with me,” (verse 7).

As a Christian, it amazes me how God knows we will experience ups and downs but still desires for us to remain joyful, hopeful, having the faith and confidence that everything will be alright. 

If he desires this, it is because in him we can experience joy, gladness, happiness and peace in the midst of the storms. So I encourage you all, including myself, to cry if you need to, be completely honest about how you feel and then with a joyful heart believe God will work it out.