22nd Sunday after Pentecost

Year 3: October 16, 2016

Preaching Text: 1 Samuel 1:9-11, 19-20; 2:1-10

One Word from Sophia by Jim Averbeck

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: One of my son’s favorite books came to mind as an interesting parallel to Hannah’s story. Sophia has one true desire: to get a pet giraffe for her birthday. The bulk of the story focuses on Sophia trying to convince her family that giraffe ownership is a good idea. Like Hannah, Sophia shares what she’ll do if her desire is fulfilled. Like Hannah, the unlikely occurs and her desire is realized. Like Hannah, Sophia’s story ends with expression of thanksgiving. This text and story invite us to consider our own desires. Although Hannah and Sophia’s stories both have happy endings, we know that many desires go unfulfilled; in life we experience both joy and disappointment. Wonder together about how, where, and to whom we express our desires and consider the ways we might respond when they are or are not fulfilled.

(Often when discussing this text with children, I’m drawn to exploring the idea that we can share any and all feelings with God. A number of wonderful books can be found in public libraries about expressing feelings.)

Thanks to regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook for writing the Lectionary Links for Year 3 of the Narrative Lectionary.

Lectionary Links (NL): October 16, 2016 by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.