Daily Deliberation and Prayer - 01/20/2011

What is It That We Ask of the Lord?

1 There was a certain man of Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham son of Elihu son of Tohu son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 He had two wives; the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. 3 Now this man used to go up year by year from his town to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the Lord. 4 On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters; 5 but to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the Lord had closed her womb. 6 Her rival used to provoke her severely, to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. 7 So it went on year by year; as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. 8 Her husband Elkanah said to her, "Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? Why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?" 9 After they had eaten and drunk at Shiloh, Hannah rose and presented herself before the Lord. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. 10 She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord, and wept bitterly. 11 She made this vow: "O Lord of hosts, if only you will look on the misery of your servant, and remember me, and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a male child, then I will set him before you as a nazirite until the day of his death. He shall drink neither wine nor intoxicants, and no razor shall touch his head." 12 As she continued praying before the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. 13 Hannah was praying silently; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard; therefore Eli thought she was drunk. 14 So Eli said to her, "How long will you make a drunken spectacle of yourself? Put away your wine." 15 But Hannah answered, "No, my lord, I am a woman deeply troubled; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. 16 Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation all this time." 17Then Eli answered, "Go in peace; the God of Israel grant the petition you have made to him." 18And she said, "Let your servant find favor in your sight." Then the woman went to her quarters, ate and drank with her husband, and her countenance was sad no longer. 19 They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord; then they went back to their house at Ramah. Elkanah knew his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. 20 In due time Hannah conceived and bore a son. She named him Samuel, for she said, "I have asked him of the Lord."

1 Samuel 1:20

This lectionary segment from today’s reading is a long one, and is filled with so much that a distinguished orator could expound on its truths for quite some time. Since I do not consider myself an especially “distinguished” preacher, I’m just going to touch on one of the themes that could be drawn out from this sacred text. Well, okay, actually two important points will be addressed, which are both so intertwined that one does not subsist without the other (at least as I see it in this passage). And these two elements both are exhibited in the person of Hannah: unwavering faith and persistence before her God.

The personal faith and belief of Hannah is certainly demonstrated in this narrative handed down to us. This complete devotion and trust which she has in her God didn’t, however, provide her with any kind of exemption from the emotions and feelings she struggled with in regards to her great need. She so desperately desired, like most wives then, and today, to be the vessel that would nurture new life; new life that in itself would bring forth future generations. But try as she may, that blessing seemed to elude her throughout all the rapidly fleeting years. She surely consulted with whomever she felt she could in her family – maybe her mother, an older sister. She may have even discussed her quandary with a village Wiseman (or better yet, Wiser-women). But try as she may, motherhood seemed always to evade her.

But, she always believed, with all her heart, that anything was possible with, and by, the God of her ancestors (who, if we remember the story, suffered the same fate as Hannah, generations earlier). And so Hannah prayed, despite the emotional ups and downs with each passing hope of conceiving. Hannah reached out to God with every ounce of faith she had, to deliver her from her inability to become “heavy with child”, and to allow her to deliver forth that life which she longed to nurture in her own womb. The narrative makes clear that despite the long years of waiting; despite the many sacrifices, and the annual pilgrimages to worship at the Temple; despite the endless nights of crying herself to sleep, Hannah never stopped praying for the relief she sought.

And that is the second important lesson to draw from today’s scripture reading. Even the strongest of personal faith requires a persistence before God. Hannah prayed unceasingly, and always prayed the same concern. Repeatedly – without fail – day after day, and year after year, her prayer was for the intense inner desire to mother a child. Nothing stopped Hannah – not the provocation from others in her family, because of her condition – not even her own depression could keep her from her appointed times of pray, or from again crying out to God with her need.

• Faith: in the One who can do all things, even blessing with a miracle, against all odds.
• Persistence: never failing to keep acting upon that faith and belief, held so dear to the heart and spirit.

The two must be unequivocally linked in our journey with our God. Unwavering faith in the face of all that would turn us otherwise. And, a persistent demanding of the wholeness that this divine relationship represents. God expected a lot from Hannah, as a child of Israel, and Hannah unrelentingly expected a lot from God, as they intimately journeyed together towards the Kingdom, which awaits even us.

Almighty God: I declare your almightiness from the depths of my faith, which knows that all things – anything – is possible through you. Hear my persistent prayers – my daily obstinacy in seeking fullness of life with you, and the blessings of wholeness in my life, and in the lives of countless others for whom I pray. Hear my prayer this day – and everyday. Again.

Amen.

Rev. Michael Kirchhoff