June 19, 2005
“Give Ear to My Prayer”
Psalm 86
1. Long, long ago, a child was born to the Prophet Abraham and his wife’s servant, Hagar. The baby's name was Ishmael and, when he was born, he was Abraham's only son. Now, of course, as we know, God had promised to make Abraham the founder of a great nation. But his wife, Sarah was unable to have children, or so it seemed. So, in those days, since it was extremely important that men have children …it was not unusual for a man to have more than one wife, or even to have children with slaves or in this case with the maidservant of his wife. This is how it came about that Abraham’s first son was Ishmael. But God also told Abraham that one day; Sarah too would have a son. He would be named Isaac.
So, when Isaac was born … there naturally was trouble between Sarah and Hagar. Abraham was caught in the middle, so to speak. So also were Hagar and Sarah. For, after all, they, too, had agreed to this bargain. Sarah, doubting that she would have children agrees to the arrangement. Hager, a slave girl, really, wanted to have children, and she goes ahead hoping to eventually move up in the world.
Aren’t these wonderful stories? Complicated, too. And very human. We set out to solve on problem and we create another – especially in human relationships and families where envy and jealousy can come to play such an important part of life – as well and goodness and kindness and forgiveness.
Well, according to the Book of Genesis:
When she knew she was pregnant, Hagar began to despise her mistress. 5 Then Sarah said to Abram, "You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my servant in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the LORD judge between you and me."
6 "Your servant is in your hands," Abram said. "Do with her whatever you think best." Then Sarah mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her.
7 The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; 8 And he said, "Hagar, servant of Sarah, where have you come from, and where are you going?" "I'm running away from my mistress Sarah," she answered.
9 Then the angel of the LORD told her, "Go back to your mistress and submit to her." 10 The angel added, "I will so increase your descendants that they will be too numerous to count." 11 The angel of the LORD also said to her: "You are now with child and you will have a son. You shall name him Ishmael, [a] for the LORD has heard of your misery.So, Hagar is causing trouble for Sarah – being uppity – we might say … and Sarah goes to Abraham and says – it’s all your fault – you better do something – and Abraham says, no it’s not – she’s your servant – you do something – and so Sarah gets nasty with Hagar and Hagar runs away … and you thought “Days of Our” Lives was pretty interesting!
But, God has other intentions and tells Hagar to return … and she does … and everything is fine for about 13 years … 13 years … that’s quite a while … and then, as we know, Sarah gets pregnant … and she laughs and sure enough the child is born … and then the trouble starts all over again … for as the Bible tells it:
8 The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9 But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, 10 and she said to Abraham, "Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac." 11 The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. 12 But God said to him, "Do not be so distressed about the boy and your maidservant. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring [b] will be reckoned. 13 I will make the son of the maidservant into a nation also, because he is your offspring." 14 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the desert of Beersheba.
15 When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went off and sat down nearby, about a bowshot away, for she thought, "I cannot watch the boy die." And as she sat there nearby, she [c] began to sob.
17 God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, "What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18 Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation."
19 Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.
20 God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. 21 While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt.2. Now, isn’t that a good story? … and there is more because this story of Abraham is well known to both Jews and Christians as well as to Muslims. For, in Islam, Abraham is remembered as one of the great Prophets, and also as the father of the Prophet Ishmael, who was the ancestor of Prophet Muhammad himself. Remember, of course that Hagar was an Egyptian and Ishmael married and Egyptian.
So, according to Islamic tradition, the three great religions would be Islam, the Jewish religion, and Christianity. For, according to their tradition God told Abraham to take Hagar and Ishmael to a new land, far from their home in Palestine. They were to travel through the desert, to a place that God would show them. Abraham knew that the journey would be long and dangerous -- but he also knew that he should trust God, who would look after them and provide them with everything they needed. They set out across the desert, and traveled for many days. At last, they came to a desolate valley. It was the place where long ago, Adam had built the first place for the worship of the one God. But there was nothing there now but hot sand and bare hills. It was a frightening and lonely place -- and yet, it seemed to Abraham that this was the place where God wanted him to leave Hagar and her child. Abraham gave them a little food and water, and prepared to leave. Hagar watched him, afraid of what might happen.
"How can you leave us here?" she cried. "We will soon have nothing to eat or drink!"
Abraham was too sad to answer. "Is this God's will, or your own decision?" asked Hagar.
"It is God's command," replied Abraham. "In that case, He will take care of us," replied Hagar.
But at first, it almost seemed as if this was not so. Abraham left, praying, as he did, so that his family would be safe. It was not long before the food and water were finished. The hot sun beat down on the mother and child. The desert was lonely and silent. Hagar looked up at the two hills that enclosed the valley. There was not a tree nor a blade of grass, or any living thing in sight. Nothing moved. There was not even a bird in the sky. The baby began to cry, and the sound tore at Hagar's heart. She knew she must find water. She ran up one of the hills and scanned the country around for signs of an oasis. She saw nothing. She tried the other hill -- but still found nothing. All the time, Hagar could hear the child crying, and she could not bear it. She ran back to comfort him. He lay on the ground, kicking the sand with his feet. As as he did so, quite suddenly, water began to gush from the ground. It tumbled quickly over the stones, cutting through the desert sand in a cool, clear stream. At once, Hagar gave thanks to God, and then gave little Ishmael some water to drink. He stopped crying, and slept peacefully in her arms. Hagar looked up again at the sky, and saw that flocks of birds were making their way toward the well. They settled on the side of the stream to drink.
3. There are many lessons to be learned from this story. But, lest you think it too far fetched … I can tell you of an actual account …
Tell about how in my home town a boy was adopted by a wealthly husband and wife. Then, when they had a child of their own they cruelly neglected him in favor of their natural child. One night, while he was a teenager, he was killed by a snow plow … in alley… while delivering papers. A real Charles Dickens story.
So, we should not get the idea … that these Bible stories are fairy tales which cannot happen in real life .
And, the other thing is that sometimes … what we pray for is what we get … and once we get it … our gratitude turns into a selfish sense of entitlement.
These are real people – after all. Hagar wants a child and she gets one … and immediately looks down on Sarah. Sarah wants to have a child, too and she gets one and immediately resents Hagar. And, Abraham who wants a child, too, gets two of them … and then has to choose.
WHAT A DIFFICULT JOB IT IS TO BE GOD? NOBODY IS HAPPY!! RIGHT?
4. Or, take the current situation in Israel. As we all know the Jews were persecuted in Europe for centuries, ending in the Nazi holocaust. Something had to be done … they needed a homeland. So, everyone agreed that it was only fair for the Jews to return to Israel, the land God had promised them in the Bible … and so the United Nations agreed to it … and everything was fine … or, almost. But, in order to do that, the Palestinians had to be shoved aside. And now, the Jews, who were persecuted, are in the position of being the ones who are subjugating someone else. Now the Jews who were the recipients of God’s blessing … feel they are entitled to what they have. And there is no end in sight. No peaceful resolution.
And all this has to do with the Bible … and Sarah, and Hagar, and Ishmael … and Abraham … and the origins of religious monotheism … the belief in the one transcendent God … who is called Yahweh … or Allah … depending more than likely upon the circumstance of where you are born.
Especially, nowadays, reading the Bible, which used to be mostly about the past, seems more like current events.
And quite often, when God, who we are always asking in prayer, TO FIX THINGS, does fix things … not everyone is happy. For, so it was, that God fixed the problem of Abraham’s children by giving him two sons and when that didn’t work out exactly … and Sarah sent Hagar and Ishmael away … God made them into a another nation of people … the Moslems … and now they are back … with us … all over again … amazing … isn’t it?
5. Now, this is all … a prelude to talking about prayer … this morning … for we all can stand to know more about that … and one of the best places to start is the book of Psalms which will be our text for this morning and for next Sunday.
Prayer is big business nowadays …
Next month I am taking two weeks off to study again at the Pacific School of Religion in California … … it is all part of the Graduate Theological Union a consortium of ten seminaries in the Bay Area including Baptist, Lutheran, Catholic, Unitarian, Jewish, Moslem, and United Church of Christ (which also includes Methodist students). GTU has a great summer program which includes over 40 courses.
Last year I was part of a seminar on prayer … and this year there are even more workshops and seminars on prayer, meditation, and contemplation including such classes as:
Introduction to Spiritual Direction
Traditional Christian Spiritual Practices for Today
Exploring Our Spiritual Selves Through Dream Work
Spiritual Discernment – I’d Say Yes God, If I Knew What
You Wanted
Prayer Like a Mystic and one about Thomas Merton
6. In addition, as you know, our pastor’s group has been meeting twice a year at the Episcopal House of Prayer at St. John’s Abbey in St. Cloud. This fall we hope to invite several lay people for our churches to be part of a prayer and mediation retreat in October.
None of this … I might add … as available when I went to Seminary in the l960’s … a lot has changed as people are becoming more and more interested in spirituality and spiritual practices …
And with that has come a greater interest in our main source of spiritual practice - the Bible. Of course people are always praying in the Bible … Moses prays … Abraham prays … Isaiah prays … Jesus Prays … St. Paul prays … everybody is praying … In fact, there is nobody, really in the Bible who is not talking to God or who God is not talking to … isn’t that right … for the Bible is less interested in philosophical discussion about the nature of God … and more about the reality of God being present … or not present … and what to do about it.
And the major course on prayer … the major spiritual practice in Bible is the Book of Psalms … 150 in total … which cover the whole waterfront when in comes to prayer and different kinds of prayer and situations … in life …
The book of Psalms is a kind of summary of the Bible. The psalms reflect all of the major traditions that developed in ancient Israel. Some psalms summarize creation stories in the books of Genesis and Exodus. Some retell the hero stories in the books of Joshua-Judges. Others reflect the Stories of David’s Rise to Power from the books of Samuel-Kings. There are psalms that teach like the book of Proverbs, and there are psalms that revisit the trials of the prophets. Finally, there are apocalyptic psalms that describe the death of an old world and the creation of a new world from the books of Isaiah and Ezekiel and Daniel. Rabbis emphasized the character of the book of Psalms as a summary of the Bible by dividing it into five parts (Pss 1–41; Pss 42–72; Pss 73–89; Pss 90–106; Pss 107–) just as the Torah is divided into five parts—Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.
7. Psalms are made up of Teachings, Hymns and Laments. The teachings are composed mostly of adages and proverbs. These are also called analogies. An adage compares what is known with what is unknown. A proverb contrasts what is know with what is unknown. An adage is more a statement which is straightforward such as:
Wise are those who do not walk with the wicked . . .
Wise are those who do not stand with sinners . . .
Wise are those who do not sit with fools . . .
Wise are those who obey the law of Yahweh.
Wise are those who meditate on it day and night.
A proverb, on the other hand, is more like this:
The wise are like trees planted by water.
They yield fruit every season.
Their leaves do not wither.
They thrive year after year.
Not so fools,
Not so.
Fools are like chaff.
They are blown away by the wind.8. Then there are hymns or songs of praise such as:
Proclaim Yahweh on earth! Glorify our divine patron in the heavens!
The heavens are the work of only your little finger,
The moon and the stars you set effortlessly in place.
And then there are laments:
Most psalms are laments. Standard laments have five components: a complaint, a petition, a vow, a declaration of innocence, and a confession of faith. Complaints express anger at Yahweh for breaking the covenant in which Yahweh promised to protect its villages from their enemies, It is demanding that Yahweh compensate it for its loss.
Complaints in most laments are not only painfully outspoken, but shockingly frank in blaming Yahweh for suffering. Few today pray with such unrestrained anger at God. Nonetheless, these ancient people were not heretics who had lost their faith, they simply expressed their faith differently than most people in biblical religions today. They considered themselves to be full partners with Yahweh in determining what happened and how it happened. Believers today are much more passive and in some ways more fatalistic than their ancestors in the Bible. They more often pray with resignation rather than with outrage. They pray to accept the will of God. The laments in the book of Psalms pray to change it.
9. According to scholar, Don Benjamin, whose study book on the Old Testament I have found very interesting and helpful:
Laments are the traditions of a people in process, not a fully defined theology of suffering. Therefore, petitions for help from Yahweh, which appear in many laments, can represent both healthy and unhealthy reactions in a household to its loss of land and children.
Petitions reflect a healthy human participation in developing divine will when they remind Yahweh to protect and provide for a household whose land and children are threatened. Petitions are a form of denial when they are prayed without passion or pain or anger. The denial in unhealthy petitions pretends that loss has not occurred at all, or that the loss is only temporary. Denial not only postpones the beginning of recovery, it also prolongs the time during which unchallenged loss continues to drain the resources of a victim. In contrast, the acceptance in healthy petitions that angrily call upon Yahweh to come to the aid of a household in crisis allows victims of loss to begin recovery.
Does this make sense? Think for a moment about our feelings in a time of loss – especially when someone close to us dies … certainly there is sadness … there is shock … for death is always shocking … there is fear … of the unknown … for death reminds us of our own mortality … and there is anger … for it does not seem fair … and there is doubt … for we want to know why God allows death to happen …
Prayer in time of loss or death … or in a crisis can be an expression of many feelings … even anger … and the Hebrews weren’t afraid to express themselves to God … directly … unlike many today, as the author points out, where we seem to think we should withhold our feelings when praying to God … as if God somehow doesn’t know what we are feeling in the first place …
10. Well, the Psalm which we read for today … is a prayer … a prayer of lament … isn’t it?
First there is a petition that God might hear our prayer:
1 Hear, O LORD, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.
2 Guard my life, for I am devoted to you. You are my God; save your servant who trusts in you.
3 Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I call to you all day long.Who has not thought this … especially when beginning to pray? I wonder if God is listening. And we want an answer … ARE YOU LISTENING, GOD?
Reminds me of that book by Malcom Boyd – Are you running with me Jesus?”
11. And then there is a hymn – an acknowledgement of the greatness of God which is also a confession of faith:
8 Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord; no deeds can compare with yours.
9 All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, O Lord; they will bring glory to your name.
10 For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God.And when we pray … of course we are reminded of just who it is we are praying to … isn’t that right? Not just anybody … but God himself … the creator … our creator … the God of the whole universe … not just anybody … God himself … that is usually, food for thought … and should cause us to pause and moment …
And then there is a request from God … for teaching …
Teach me your way, O LORD, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.
And lastly, there is a request …
14 The arrogant are attacking me, O God; a band of ruthless men seeks my life— men without regard for you.
16 Turn to me and have mercy on me; grant your strength to your servant and save the son of your maidservant. [b]
17 Give me a sign of your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for you, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me.12. Sounds good … a petition that God might hear us … a hymn or recognition of who God is … the greatness of God … and desire that God might give us wisdom and proper teaching … and a personal request in time of trouble … grant me mercy … give me strength … SAVE ME … SAVE MY SON …
WAIT A MINUTE … this sounds familiar … very familiar … what is this business about “your servant” and “the son of your maidservant?”
Can this be someone we know? Can it be Hagar? Can it be Hagar and her son, Ishmael, who were abandoned in the desert … perhaps to die … by Abraham … and when the water runs out … Hagar puts the boy down … because she cannot bear to see him die … and the boy cries out … a pretty desperate situation …
No different though, perhaps, from a mother in a hospital room with a sick child … or a child who has been in an automobile accident …
At that moment even a hospital room can feel like a desert … can it not …?
And so, is this a prayer … a lament … a petition … of Hagar … protesting … angry … despairing … this proud Egyptian slave woman who has bargained her way toward freeing herself … by having a child … and now it has backfired on her … because she did not plan on Sarah having her own child … and now she is thrown out … and her son, the long promised son … of Abraham is going to die …
13. If that were you or me … you’d be praying pretty hard at that moment wouldn’t you … you’d be really upset and angry … and scared … and it wouldn’t be pretty … would it?
Not some nice tranquil time of mediation … or contemplation … or a peaceful sunset … or even the famous painting of the old bearded man praying over the Bible with a loaf of bread that people have on their kitchen walls …
No, it wouldn’t be like that at all … but it would be real …
And that is why the psalms are so great … because they are real … based on real situations … and the Hebrews knew all about it … they knew the stories of Abraham and Sarah and Hagar and Ishmael … and they could imagine … Hagar praying … and it was also their prayer … it was real …
And it is no different today … is it?
14. Now, according to the Bible … God answered Hagar’s prayer and heard Ishmael’s cry … and they found water … and it ends happily … or at least … God redeems his promise … in spite of the humanness and the selfishness and pettiness … of Sarah and Hagar and Abraham and even Ishmael, himself.
And God forgives … even us … and in spite of suffering and trouble God is there … when we call upon him in prayer …
Was it a miracle … did God put a well there suddenly …where there was none before … or did Hagar just not see it … in her distress …?
Well, lets not get into miracles this morning … but let me end with a word about suffering … as it relates to prayer … and to life as it was understood in the Bible:
Biblical scholar, Don Benjamin points out that in the psalms, as in Psalm 86, the confession of faith reminded the Hebrews that how their ancestors cried out to Yahweh in laments, and because they did, they survived their suffering.
“Our ancestors had faith in you. They had faith, and you delivered them from their enemies. They cried out to you, and were saved. They had faith in you, and were not shamed” (Ps 22:4–5*).Today, He writes, people in western European cultures look forward to find answers to problems. Research and development define their lifestyles and their worldviews. In contrast, the Hebrews looked backward to find answers to problems. In the world of the Bible, there was nothing new to discover. Problems resulted when people forgot something. The world came with a complete set of instructions. Problem solving was simply taking the time to reread them. To a large extent the Bible is the legacy of remembering of the past that this confession of faith reflects. “Our ancestors suffered, and so we suffer. Our ancestors cried out to Yahweh, and so we cry out to Yahweh. Our ancestors survived, and so we will survive.”
The emphasis in the confession of faith is not that the ancestors cried out to Yahweh and the suffering stopped. The ancestors cried out to Yahweh and they survived the suffering, which, in due time, ran its course. Laments were not intended to help the Hebrews to avoid pain, but to survive it.
Today, it is common enough for people to embrace a faith tradition as an insurance policy against suffering. Believers often think that they cannot, or at least that they should not, suffer. When they do suffer, some Muslims, Christians, and Jews loose their faith. Yet, Suffering in ancient Israel was no different than suffering today, but suffering was not an argument against the existence of God. The Hebrews did not expect to lead a life without suffering, but unlike many today who suffer alone, they suffered as a community and with God at their side. Laments, like those in the psalms, did not create a pain-free world, but rather assembled the people and God to support the household whose land and children were at risk. Like the mourners themselves, Yahweh and the clan did not take away the pain of the household; they simply stood with it in its pain, and that made it possible for the household to survive.
And that is one of the important reasons why we are all here in church this morning. To stand together, pray together, suffer together, rejoice together … and to hear the word of God, together.
Let us pray …
