Friday, November 23, 2018

November 18 2018 Free to Choose


November 18 2018 Free to Choose *I Samuel 1.4-20, Mark 13.1-8 Pastor Jacqueline Hines
I heard a part of a story on the wbyn - 107.5 radio station this week that can give us pause to think or smile. Two men were having lunch and one of them bowed his head down and whispered a prayer. The other man looking on with concern asked, “Do you have a headache?”
The man replied, “no”. Is your food o.k.?
The man answered, “My food looks fine.”
“Well then, why did you put your head down?”
The man explained that he was just giving thanks.
The other man said, “Oh, I never give thanks. I just dig right in.” “Oh,” noted the man who had given thanks, “That’s what my dog does. He just dives right in.”
This story reminds us that giving thanks somehow humanizes us.
==
Did you notice in the scripture reading from Samuel that there is a whole lot of holiness going on? The name of the book itself – Samuel directs us to God, for the name has the “el” in it. In Hebrew “el” is the word for “God”. [slide #  1 “el” means God in Hebrew] Samuel means “God has heard”.  In the first verse, of this chapter in the book of Samuel, a husband and father named Elkanah –   meaning “God has created” makes a sacrificial offering to God. That’s what Godly men do; they make holy sacrifices and offerings to God. They are leaders in giving to God and creating an atmosphere that is generous and kind. Praise God for Godly men and women!
Elkanah’s wife, Hannah had it going on, too. “Hannah” means “grace.” [slide #  2  Hannah means…] We all appreciate God’s grace. Hannah presented herself to the Lord by the grace of God. She did not just enter the temple to worship with her friends and family. She went to God to spend some quality time. She sat in the sanctuary in order to have a private conversation and some personal one-on-one time with God. That’s what Godly women and men do; they nurture a personal relationship with God, so that their public persona will personify the purposes and plans of God, more perfectly. Godly men and women of the bible were a work in progress, just like the rest of us. [slide #  3 keep calm…]
Verse 11 tells us that Hannah was holy enough to make a vow, a pledge, taking a risk to make a promise and commit something so BIG to God that only God could make it happen. This is how we make our stewardship pledges; we make a promise so big that we could never accomplish it without the power of God. [slide #  4  Hannah promised…]
Verse 19 is also a reminder of the continual holiness that illuminates this text. Hannah rose early in the morning – not to put her makeup on, or to get breakfast ready for her family, or to get a head start on the camel traffic to go on vacation. Hannah rose early – like we do on Easter morning – to worship God, and her husband rose with her. They went to worship God together. [slide # 5  They rose early..]
It was in the sanctuary that the priest Eli saw Hannah whispering her prayers to God. He thought she was intoxicated. Most churches would find it unusual to find a drunk person in the pews, but there are always exceptions. [slide #  6  Hannah seated in prayer] When I was a student, trying to make a great impression one Sunday, in downtown New Haven, just when the service was about to begin or end…I do not recall, a man came stumbling in the front doors, disheveled and wreaking with alcohol. I was trying to show him the way out, but one of the members tucked her head underneath my arms as I was holding the door and told him where he could get food. She had her holy ears on and heard what I could not hear. She heard him ask for food.
The scripture is dotted with a lot of holy activity throughout this passage. At the same time, Elkanah was a product of his culture. He had two wives, which was not God’s plan. Hannah and Peninnah competed anxiously for the same husband. God’s people do well to pray and reflect on our religious as well as our cultural traditions and conditions. When we think about what we do and say rather than simply follow the crowd, when we promise God we will do what God guides us to do, we come out better, even when it is not easy. [slide #  7  think…]
Since the culture was set up for women to get their basic needs for food and water through men, and men could only be men if they had a lot of women, clearly the writer’s inspired purpose of this scripture is not to put a spotlight on the fact that Elkanah was torn between two lovers. It was not to tickle our ears with the drama of two women in a dog fight for one man. What our spiritual ears hear is the conversation between God and a woman who had the courage and conviction to take her burdens to the Lord and a man who held her close through the thick and the thin or life. [slide # 8  Elkanah and Hannah]
His other wife, Peninnah – whose name means “jewel” was a shrewd cookie. All that glitters is not gold. Peninnah was very noticeable for her acting like the wicked witch of the west. She was indeed, God’s diamond in the rough.
Peninnah knew the glory of every man and woman was to have a son. She knew Hannah was barren, and she teased Hannah to death, putting her down instead of lifting her up. [slide #  9  Hannah’s despair] Peninnah knew how to bring a grown woman to her knees. She had a quiver full of choice words, toxic tones, shrieking laughs, and cruel gestures that could keep you crying all night long. And Hannah did cry. It was by the grace of God that Hannah did not fall apart and run away; instead, Hannah rose and went to worship the God who could save her. And save her, God did.
God not only saved Hannah from being laughed at, embarrassed and ashamed because of the culture’s rejection of her, God did it in a surprising way. Everyone understood that she was physically unable to have children. They thought it was impossible. The scriptures encourages us to think big, and pray big [slide #  10  pray big] because with God all things are possible. It was a welcome surprise when she did get pregnant. [slide #  11 …God surprises…] And it was a boy. She named him Sam u el which means “God has heard”. Perhaps she was less stressed and worried after deciding to trust God and less stress made it easier to conceive as is often the case.
We too, do well to make the choice to present ourselves to the Lord, to let go of the stress –if only for a moment – and to think big and pray big, [slide # 12 think big…trust God] to refuse to cry when the world rubs us the wrong way. Prayer is the only way to survive in this world. Prayer opens the door to hear the wisdom of God, to receive God’s care and comfort.
Prayer is planting seeds for a spiritual harvest. There are no guarantees what that harvest will be. We may have to let go of some blessings as Hannah did when she dedicated Samuel to God as we do when we have our children baptized. We will surely gain other blessings along the way, for God’s mercies are new every  morning, but it is always a good thing to pray big  [slide # 13  pray big…listens] and expect to be surprised like Hannah and give thanks to God for every blessing that comes our way. Amen. [slide # 14  light is greater than darkness…]


No comments:

Post a Comment