Read 1 Samuel 2:1-8.
Hannah’s Song: We Are Dreamers
In our Word for today, we are swept up into a joyful song coming from the lips of Hannah, a woman who had been unable to have children until God blessed her with a son, Samuel. Her inability to become pregnant was a source of mockery and shame for her, eventually moving her to cry out to God at the temple. She cries out like many of us do in our own times of darkness: “Lord, do you see all this pain I am in? How could this be happening? Listen up and remember me! Do something!” In this story, God grants Hannah her long-awaited dream.
We know that life does not always happen like this for us. Each of us carries a dream or a hope that may never come to fruition in our lifetime. With Hannah, we dream of a different reality than the one we are living. The truth Hannah offers us in her song is that dreaming is part of our calling as God’s children. She not only envisions a world where a barren woman can become a mother, but she sees a world with no violence, hunger, poverty, or death. Instead, the vulnerable are honored, the powerful are humbled, and everyone has what they need. Hannah invites us into the holy tension of Advent that holds together both our messy reality and our audacious dreams of a future with Christ.
Pray
God of our deepest desires, set fire to our imaginations to envision a world where your love and justice reign. Fill our lungs with your song this day and forever. Amen.
Alli Buikema
Seminary Intern, UNC Presbyterian Campus Ministry (Chapel Hill, NC)
Words for Waiting 