"God, I hurt."
Prayer is inspired by God's character, his promises and love for us, not our faith or feelings. We pray because we believe that God exists and cares for us. The psalms are survivor prayers from a people who desire and expect deliverance from God. They pray as if their request has already been granted. This is hope. We too, pray for the will and ability to enter into the healing and salvation that is already present.

An occurrence of pain can be brief and simple or prolonged and complex. In chronic pain is the opportunity for impression, interpretation and revelation. Pain is experienced both in chronos and kairos time. Chronos is clock time, the human construct we use to order our lives. Kairos is the time and space where chronos stands still. It is the divine place where human time does not exist. It is the place where God hears, God heals, and God saves.

Praying in pain places us in the presence of God, with or without words. This presence is a form of praying, without effort, in kairos time. This is sufficient, because God's grace is sufficient.

Suggested Psalms
Ps. 61, especially verse 1 - "Hear my cry, O god, listen to my prayer."
Ps. 30, especially verse 2 - "I cried to you for help, and you have healed me."
Ps. 22 Note the transition from plea to praise.
Ps. 73 Job - Why me?
Ps. 77
Ps. 88
Ps. 91
Ps. 102:17
Ps. 130