Order, Words, & Voices
10.20.24, Being Noticed/Being Heard, I Samuel 1:1-20
Order
Pre Worship Music – Spotify – Open and Close
Lighting of Christ Candle/ Rick
Songs Lord I Need You 5925687 Lynn/Linda
Passage/Prayer I Samuel 1:1-20 Lars
Song Because He Lives (Amen) 7027887 Lynn/Linda
Impact Rick
Impact/Message Being Noticed/Being Heard Rick
Music Gratitude 7158417 Lynn/Linda
Community Rick
Closing Peace Rick
Closing Music Thank You Lord # 577439 Lynn/Linda
Post Worship Music – Spotify – Open and Close
- Please record message on camera memory card.
- On the message Video Leave Room above Speaker’s head for the instagram post.
- Screen Share for entire message
Christ Candle (Slides) (Lynn playing/team ready) ?
[Slide] [Light Christ Candle]
Leader: Today we seek truth.
Response: Today we seek a recognition of the power of truth.
Leader: Today we accept the reality of lies and deceit that have become casually acceptable by those who influence and lead us.
Response: Today we accept our obligation to do the work of separating lies and truth.
Leader: Today we seek to love God, our God, the God who is love.
Response: Today we strive to love all peoples not just those who agree with us.
Leader: Today we choose to follow God.
Response: Today we choose to worship God.
Leader: May our worship be guided by a focus on God and not humans.
Response: May our focus be steadfast and visible in our lives when we leave this place.
Leader: Let this be our prayer.
Response: Amen.
Music (Slides) Lynn/Linda
Lord I Need You 5925687
Verse 1
Lord I come I confess
Bowing here I find my rest
And without You I fall apart
You’re the one that guides my heart
Chorus 1
Lord I need You oh I need You
Ev’ry hour I need You
My one defense my righteousness
Oh God how I need You
Verse 2
Where sin runs deep Your grace is more
Where grace is found is where You are
And where You are Lord I am free
Holiness is Christ in me
Where You are Lord I am free
Holiness is Christ in me
Bridge
So teach my song to rise to You
When temptation comes my way
And when I cannot stand I’ll fall on You
Jesus You’re my hope and stay
And when I cannot stand I’ll fall on You
Jesus You’re my hope and stay
Chorus 2
Lord I need You oh I need You
Ev’ry hour I need You
My one defense my righteousness
Oh God how I need You
My one defense my righteousness
Oh God how I need You
Passage (Slides) I Samuel 1:1-20 Lars
A man named Elkanah had two wives; one was Hannah, and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
Every year Elkanah would go up and sacrifice to the Lord at Shiloh. Every time that Elkanah sacrificed, he gave portions to his Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters, but to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, even though the Lord had closed her womb.
Peninnah would bully Hannah severely, to irritate her, because she had no children. Every year when they went up to the house of the Lord. Hannah would weep and not eat.
Elkanah said to Hannah, “Why do you weep and not eat? Why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?”
On one occasion, after they had eaten, Hannah rose and presented herself before the Lord. Eli the priest was sitting beside the temple doorpost. Hannah was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly.
Hannah made this vow: “O Lord, please look on my misery and remember me and do not forget me but give to me, your servant, a male child, then, I will set him before you as a nazirite until he dies He shall drink neither wine nor intoxicants, and no razor shall touch his head.”
Eli observed Hannah as she prayed before the Lord. She was praying silently; with only her lips moving; Eli thought she was drunk. So he said to her, “How long will you make a drunken spectacle of yourself? Put away your wine.”
Hannah answered, “No, I am a woman deeply troubled; I have no drunk wine or strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. Do not regard me as a worthless woman, I have been speaking out of my great pain.”
Eli answered, “Go in peace; may the God of Israel grant the petition you have made to him.” Hannah went her way and was sad no longer. In due time Hannah conceived and bore a son named Samuel who she had asked for from the Lord.
Join me in the prayer of Jesus,
Our Father who art in Heaven hallowed be your name.
Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
Forgive us our trespasses, while we forgive those who trespass against us.
And, lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen
Music (Slides) Lynn/Linda
Because He Lives (Amen) 7027887
Verse 1
Lord I come I confess
Bowing here I find my rest
And without You I fall apart
You’re the one that guides my heart
Chorus 1
Lord I need You oh I need You
Ev’ry hour I need You
My one defense my righteousness
Oh God how I need You
Verse 2
Where sin runs deep Your grace is more
Where grace is found is where You are
And where You are Lord I am free
Holiness is Christ in me
Where You are Lord I am free
Holiness is Christ in me
Bridge
So teach my song to rise to You
When temptation comes my way
And when I cannot stand I’ll fall on You
Jesus You’re my hope and stay
And when I cannot stand I’ll fall on You
Jesus You’re my hope and stay
Chorus 2
Lord I need You oh I need You
Ev’ry hour I need You
My one defense my righteousness
Oh God how I need You
My one defense my righteousness
Oh God how I need You
Impact Prayer (Slide) – Rick
Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, BJC upholds the historic Baptist principle of religious liberty: defending the free exercise of religion and protecting against its establishment by government. BJC is a collective of attorneys, Capitol Hill insiders, ministers and scholars who work in the courts, with Congress and in the community to defend the First Amendment’s guarantee of religious freedom for every person, including those who don’t claim a faith tradition. As the only national faith-based group solely focused on protecting religious freedom for all, BJC file briefs in pivotal Supreme Court cases, advocates for and against legislation, testifies in Congress and unites with others across faiths to ensure that every American has — and always will have — the right to follow spiritual beliefs.
Message Rick (Slides)
[Screen share for all of the sermon]
[Slide – leave slide up until next slide] ‘A man named Elkanah had two wives; one was Hannah, and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.’
I Samuel 1:1
We begin this story viewing it from a human perspective, a stuck, imperfect, and sometimes brutal earthly perspective.
Ill: Fuge ‘See you on the other side.’ We will see you without all your crud.
We humans get stuck on the human perspective, the earthly perspective, the one sided perspective, which is where we begin this story of Peninnah, Elkanah, Eli, and Hannah. All are victims of being seen through with a deceitful earthly perspective, a faulty filter – they are also all blinded by this same haze as they victimize others…the same as us.
In this first sentence we are given the foundation, the context, and the why of this story, all of which are human filters. We experience the pain, the heartbreak, the disappointment, the selfishness and the selflessness, the insecurity, the jealousy, and the vengefulness that rises out of all of these human emotions and wounded hearts. We see hopes and dreams shattered, competitive relationships ruptured, envied love, unconditional love, sacrificial love, encouraging love, safe love, and even a measure of withheld love.
We see a man named Elkanah, a woman named Hannah, another woman named Peninnah, a priest named Eli, and the God that these very, very, human humans all served. And, at the surface we see the unholy use of children as pawns in a brutal game of “I’m better than you”, and finally, we see a grieved woman, a victim of society and society’s rules and expectations, who has no children at a time when having children was the peak obligatory purpose for a woman.
A man named Elkanah had two wives; one was Hannah, and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
I Samuel 1:1
[Title Slide – leave up until page 11]
Elkanah was a man of faith, every year he would travel to the temple to observe the practices of his faith. With him on this yearly journey would be both wives and the children of his wife Peninah as well as his wife Hannah who had no children – not by any choice she had made but because she, so far, had proven unable to have children.
Having children was important. It was especially important for a father to have a son as a source of pride, as an heir, a son to carry on the work of the father, a son that would take care of his parents in their old age.
A son was a retirement policy, an income guarantor, a protector, and hope for the continuation of the family name. A son, from an unholy human perspective, was the marker of manhood and success for a father.
Hannah did not have a son, or any children, she had not met the expectation of society and of the religious system. She was worthless and she saw herself as worthless. Instead of children, Hannah had a nemesis – her fellow wife, Peninnah. Peninnah taunted Hannah, she dismissed Hannah, she intentionally did all she could do to make Hannah’s life a nightmare. Peninah used the advantage she had, which Hannah did not have, to torture Hannah.
Peninnah used the fact that she was able to conceive and give birth, in a time when giving birth was what society used to measure a woman’s worth. A reality that was not a choice, a reality that Hannah could do nothing about, a reality that was miserable, a reality that, for Hannah, was in her face every day.
Peninnah was also a victim. Her husband saw her as the ‘second wife’. Not second because of an order, but second because was less loved by her husband. Having these children was not, and could not be, a joy. They were her only hope of holding on to Elkanah. While society in its unholy filter, largely created by their own religion as well as the expectations of society, actually all societies, to have a son, to have children – she had the approval of others but she did not have her own approval, she saw herself as useless, just as Hannah saw herself as useless. The two women could have been a support to each others, they could be allies but they were not. Peninnah could not see rejoice in the gift of the children while her only desire was the love of her husband – so she became resentful of Hannah because she didn’t have what Hannah had – Love
Two women, miserable because they both wanted what the other had but neither had the ability to change the situation. They could have been sisters and allies, praying together but instead they were living, in the same house, apart.
Ironic – Thousands of years ago and today. VP Candidate demeaning women without children (regretted how he said it but not what he said), while evangelical Christians and politicians demean women using alternative methods of conception. Abraham, Jesus…
We still live with an unholy measure of worth of ourselves and others. We still judge others according to that unholy measurement.
? Lord of the Flies ?
Peninnah noticed the cries of Hannah but chose to use society’s unholy measurements of Hannah’s worth against her. The insecurity that Peninnah carried caused her to use her own pain to inflict pain upon Hannah, much like we see take place with Abraham’s wife Sarah against Hagar. Peninnah noticed Hannah’s pain but never truly heard Hannah’s cries, she hardened her heart upon noticing Hannah’s misery and saw it as a selfish opportunity.
Elkanah noticed and heard Hannah’s pain and did what he knew to do. There was no enlightenment of what he could do in regard to Peninnah’s bullying but still he empowered Hannah to do what she knew to do. He gave her more money for more prayers before God. And, he reassured Hannah that he did not see her through the human unholy measuring standard of childbearing. Elkanah also did not hold to the unholy measuring standard of humanity – he empowered Hannah to make her own sacrifice above and beyond what he had done in giving her the money. He did not argue at her decision to make her son, when he would eventually be born to be literally given to God, to serve God in the temple even as a child.
Eli, the priest, noticed Hannah’s desperation, at first he stuck to a human perspective doubting her pain, but he soon revealed a willingness to hear Hannah’s pain. In that, he too did what he was empowered to do, he made a prophetic promise to Hannah that she would have a child. Eli also accepted Hannah’s sacrifice of giving her so to God, all the while Eli knew that he was a failed father and raising a sacrificial son would have even more expectation of fathering in the eyes of God that he had accepted with his own sons.
‘Hannah, following the promise from Eli, went her way and was no longer. She had already chosen to do the only thing she knew to do, to trust God. Now she have a verification that God had not only noticed her pain but that God had also heard her pain. In due time Hannah conceived and bore a son named Samuel who she had asked for from the Lord.’
Hannah…
From a Human perspective…
Childless, Victim, Bullied, Miserable, Unworthy, Unheard
Yet, she was persistent, she prayed, she sacrificed
She was Determined, She was Blessed, She was Loved, She was still Trusting of God
Now, Hannah saw God’s perspective of who she was from a holy perspective. Now she knew that God was there, now she knew the peace and hope that comes from knowing God is present regardless of what we can see and regardless of the pain we face. She left Eli still without a child but now she was no longer sad … now she trusted.
us always.
[Slide] Challenge to us.
[Slide] Rest in God’s Arms. Trust God’s Embrace.
[Slide] Don’t allow our earthly perspectives to govern how we perceive others.
[Slide] Don’t allow our earthly perspectives to govern how we perceive ourselves.
[Slide] Always Remember – We are loved, we are blessed, we have hope, we are noticed, we are heard, we are loved.
This does not mean we will not be miserable or in pain, there may still be suffering, all because of the actions of others or even our own actions, but still, we are loved, noticed, heard.
[Slide] Always Understand – when our religious or political norms, or beliefs, cause us to be hateful or judgmental toward ourselves or others, those beliefs or norms are unholy and must to be reconsidered.
[Slide] Always Understand – From God’s perspective, we are always noticed, we are always heard, we are always loved. And, we are always called to notice and hear others. We are always called to love others.
Music (Slides) Lynn /Linda
Gratitude CCLI Song # 7158417
Verse 1
All my words fall short
I got nothing new
How could I express
All my gratitude
Verse 2
I could sing these songs
As I often do
But every song must end
And You never do
Chorus
So I throw up my hands
And praise You again and again
‘Cause all that I have is a hallelujah hallelujah
And I know it’s not much
But I’ve nothing else fit for a king
Except for a heart singing hallelujah
Hallelujah
Verse 3
I’ve got one response
I’ve got just one move
With my arms stretched wide
I will worship You
Community (Slides) Rick
- Fall-Advent Sermon Series, ‘My Eyes Have Seen”, – Next Sunday- Special Speaker Kyle Tubbs, Coordinator of CBF OK.
- CC Crop Walk, Today, 2:00pm, Ruby Grant Park (register for team Grace Fellowship on Web page or register at the walk – no cost to walk)
- Instagram, GF link on website (follow @gracefellowshipnorman)
- CBFOK Celebrating Excellence Banquet Dinner, Sunday, November 3 at 6pm at the Sam Noble Museum, GF has a table so there will no be no cost for attendees. 6 spaces open.
Speaker – Amanda Tyler , Executive Director, Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty (BJC). Tyler is also the lead organizer of BJC’s Christians Against Christian Nationalism. Tyler is the author of How to End Christian Nationalism, which will comes out this Tuesday. Tyler has served as a constitutional law analyst and an advocate for faith freedom on most major US news outlets. Religion News Service named Tyler one of “2022’s rising stars in religion. She testified before Congress in 2023 on the threats of Christian nationalism to religious liberty, and her 2022 testimony before Congress highlighted the ways Christian nationalism proves cover for white supremacy. In 2018, she appeared before a U.S. Senate Committee to testify about threats to religious liberty around the world.
Closing Peace (Slides) Rick
Leader: May the peace of the Lord go with you.
Response: And also with you.
Closing Music Lynn/Linda
Thank You Lord CCLI Song # 577439
Verse
For all that You’ve done
I will thank You
For all that You’re going to do
For all that You’ve promised
And all that You are
Is all that has carried me through
Jesus I thank You
Pre-Chorus
And I thank You thank You Lord
(And I thank You thank You Lord)
Thank You thank You Lord
(Thank You thank You)
Chorus
Thank You for loving and setting me free
Thank You for giving Your life just for me
How I thank You Jesus I thank You
Gratefully thank You thank You
Order, Words, & Voices 