Potty Mouth Prayer?

Having a potty mouth could be a form of prayer.

The cries of agony, loss or pain are expressed in many different ways. They are expressed in a wordless whimper, and God hears them. They are expressed in bloodcurdling screams, and God hears them. They are even expressed in a way that would offend the offhand listener. No matter how they are said, God knows how to interpret them, and God hears them.

The problem is we often close our hearts and our ears to the kind of language expressed in that level of pain. We do so because we think pain ought not be offensive. "Pain should be neat and controlled," we reason.

That's not the way the Psalmist saw it when he wrote, I cry aloud to the Lord; I lift up my voice to the Lord for mercy. I pour out my complaint before him; before him I tell my trouble. -- Psalm 142:1-2

And it certainly wasn't the way Job saw it when his entire family was taken away. Therefore I will not keep silent; I will speak out in the anguish of my spirit, I will complain in the bitterness of my soul. -- Job 7:11

I'm not saying this is the kind of language we encourage in everyday talk. I'm not saying it is appropriate. I am saying God hears even the most excruciating levels of pain. He doesn't turn his ears away from it. Why should we?

I like what Susan Lenzkes says about beating upon the chest of God with her anger. In her book, "When Life Takes What Matters," she says, "We beat on His chest from within the circle of His arms."

Taken from an article in the Jackson Sun and reprinted with permission from Chaplain Norris Burkes. You may read the full article at TheChaplain.net.