Learn to Walk with God
in the Midst of Suffering
About the Project
Does the regular practice of lament help people flourish?
How might the psalms of lament promote flourishing in difficult times?
Does practicing lament in a group setting change outcomes?
These are the kinds of questions that project leader Dr. Elizabeth Hall looks to answer with the Christian Lament study. Though generous funding from the Templeton World Charity Foundation, the first part of the project seeks participants who have recently experienced a difficult life event or circumstance to engage in a 4 week guided practice of lament on their smart phone. Later parts of the study include in person group engagement with topics around lament.
Get Involved
What to expect
-A prescreening questionnaire to make sure this study is a good fit for you
-A pre-test to understand where you are are emotionally, spiritually, etc. This will take around an hour
-4 weeks of daily engagement with the psalms of lament through an app called RealLife Exp. This should only take about 5 minutes per day and will only be on weekdays (20 days total)
-A post-test. This will take around 45 minutes and includes a $50 gift card as thanks
-An opportunity to volunteer for a post-program interview, with an additional $25 gift card as thanks
Participation Requirements
-18+ years old
-Located in the United States or Canada
-Active Christian
-Recently gone through, or currently going through a hard time
-Access to a smartphone
Have questions? Fill out our contact form below.
Project Leader
Dr. Elizabeth Hall
Dr. Hall is Professor at Rosemead School of Psychology, Biola University, where she teaches interdisciplinary courses on psychology and religion. Her current research focuses on Christian meaning-making in suffering, psychological perspectives on faith-science conflicts, and various topics in positive psychology.
See below for more information on her and her previous work on the topic of lament.
Counseling
The Christian Lament Project is partnering with multiple churches in the Southern California area, as well as Biola University. If you need professional help or would like to speak to a counselor at any point during your participation in our study, please use the applicable resource provided below.
Get Involved
Want to participate in our study? The first step is to take the Prescreening Questionnaire to see if we're a good fit for each other.
Get in Touch
Have questions? Need help troubleshooting? Send us a message and we'll get in touch!
Stay in Touch
Interested in the project but not able to participate? Join our mailing list for updates when the materials and results are made available for everyone.