lament and union

Over the weekend I was thinking about lament and union with Christ. For a person like me, who has battled depression most all of my life, such considerations from Scripture as brought out by Michael Card and Andrew Murray (also here), I find helpful.

Card in his book gives us permission to acknowledge freely that not all is alright with us, and not everything is going well in this world. In fact, quite often, quite the opposite! The psalms are full of such lament, and he goes on to look at Job, David, Jeremiah, and Jesus himself.

Murray helps us see that a special life in Jesus in this world is not only possible, but within reach of every child of God. This life is not for the strong, but for the weak and sinful. Therefore it's for all of us. Of course we must first come to Jesus, but the rest promised to us is not just for the beginning, but for all of our lives in Jesus. The main passage is John 15 and from that we're encouraged to see that there is a life of abiding in Jesus in which the Father grafts each believer as a branch into the True Vine- Jesus. So that the life of Jesus, by his death and our union with him there, is available for us.

I have plenty more to learn or be reminded of- so that I can put it into practice. As Murray points out, we need to immediately put into practice, by faith, the truth in Jesus from God's word, that comes to us, regardless of our feelings, or even lack of understanding. I plan to meditate on John 15 at work. I want to know more of this abiding, in a deeper way, beyond just the basic way God has all of us his children, remaining in Jesus. To read that passage seems to make clear to me that there is more to it than just remaining in Jesus so as to be saved. There is surely a close life union with him, so that we bear much fruit.

I look forward to learning to live more in this reality while I go on lamenting over my own sin, the incompleteness of our redemption prior to the final resurrection, and life in this fallen world. How to put this all together, I don't know. I do think the lament should drive us more deeply into that union with Jesus, as we share in his sufferings and he with ours- in this world. And of course that this is not just an individual endeavors, but that we're also in this together, in Jesus in this world.

Any thoughts on this?