The Prodigal Son, Hannah & Samuel

Okay…I agree…that is one funky title.  You are probably asking yourself, “What do they have to do with one another?”  Really nothing except the way God used them as a convergence point in my pea-sized heart.

Hannah and Samuel was the topic of the Sunday school lesson today.  What a wonderful story this is (See 1 Samuel 1-3).  Hannah was barren and this was a deep grief for her.  She went to the temple to pray.  She did so for years and years.  The priest, Eli, thinking she was drunk in her mumbling and keaning, corrects her.  She confesses she is not drunk but sorrowful in spirit and relates the cause of her sorrow.  Eli tells her that God has heard and answered her prayer.  To her great joy Samuel is born and keeping her promise that she would dedicate her son to God if He blessed her with one, she took Samuel to Eli where he was raised in the temple.

One night Samuel heard a voice calling him.  Thinking it was Eli, he rose out of bed and went to Eli asking what he needed.

“I did not call you!  Go back to bed!”

Being obedient, Samuel did so.

Again the Lord, “Samuel!  Samuel!”

Up he goes!  Out of bed, Samuel trots to Eli and asks, “Father, you called me?”

“Then Eli perceived that the LORD had called the boy.  Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, ‘Speak, LORD, for Your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. Now the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”   And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant hears.”  (1 Samuel 3:9-10)

I thought it was so beautiful to see the golden flower of Orthodox spiritual fatherhood so evident in this story.

Eli heard Hannah’s distress.  She spoke her heart to her spiritual father.  He spoke the blessing of God to her.  Samuel, not knowing what was going on, sought out his spiritual father to ask his help and discernment about what he was hearing.  Eli, discerning it was the Lord, instructed Samuel how to respond to God’s call.

And then the story of The Prodigal Son who left home with his father’s inheritance, which he received early; squandered it on the high life; ending up eating the same food the pigs ate.  He returned home, much to his father’s delight who welcomed his son with open arms restoring his right to inherit by putting “a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet.”

In Father T’s sermon, we heard how the prodigal son joined himself to a spiritual harlot when he rejected his father’s home and all that was there for him to embrace what he wanted.  Of course he father let him go.  After all, we have free will.

The husks the prodigal ate were likely sweet when he first bit into them.  Just like sin is sweet at first blush.  It is the sweetness that is the hook which grabs you and drags you along.  But the more the prodigal chewed on the husk, its sweetness disappeared.  It became bitter and coarse.  Sin, when one continues in it, has the same effect.  It becomes bitter and coarse, causing us great grief and no relief.

Thus we receive the instructions in the Epistle to the Corinthians 6:12-20 to not united ourselves to the harlot of sin but to “shun immorality,”that we are “not our own; [but] were bought with a price.”

Both of these stories given us clear pictures of God and His everlasting Love for us.  He provides the blessing of spiritual paternity in our priests and spiritual mothers that can only be found in the Orthodox Church.  When we come to our spiritual senses after squandering and turning our back to the riches He has given us in the Holy Orthodox Church, He welcomes us with open arms, enveloping us in His unconditional Love and restores our communion with Him.
Glory to God!  Glory to Him Forever!

Music Meme Tag

Suzie’s Meanderings tagged me with a music meme.  Hmmm…this will be difficult as $100 isn’t much to spend on CDs.  I already have a bunch of Rod Stewart so that’s off the list, but here it goes:

What if you had a $100 gift card to the music store of your choice, what would you buy??

I shopped at Amazon….where else!?!!!

The Beatles:  Abbey Road ($13.97)

The Beatles:  Let It Be ($13.97)

Allman Brothers Band:  A Decade of Hits ($9.00)

Phantom of the Opera:  Original London Cast ($29.97)

The Gospel According to Matthew:  Bishop Hilarion (No price)

Beach Boys – 20 Good Vibrations, The Greatest Hits (Volume 1) by The Beach Boys ($10.97)

Beach Boys – The Greatest Hits Vol. 2: 20 More Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys ($14.99)

The Essential Barbra Streisand:  Barbra Streisand ($13.97)

Barbra Streisand:  Greatest Hits ($10.00)

Good Morning Vietman:  Original Soundtrack ($10.00)

Spent:  $97.00

Tagged:  S-P, Max, Cuz David, Cuz Pete, Uncle Curmudge, Louise, Annieroo.  I know some of you don’t have blogs so post your list in the comments!  Happy shopping!

Can you read this?

fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid, too.  Cna yuo raed tihs?  Olny 55 plepoe tuo fo 100 anc.

i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulacity uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.  The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno’t mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.  The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm.  Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.  Azanmig huh?  Yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!

This was shared by my Spanish professor.  It really was amazing to see how many of us in the class could read this rather quickly and how many could not.  It was also interesting to type it in because I found my fingers wanted to type the correct letter placement because it was what my mind was reading.  I had to say each letter under my breath to be get the incorrect placement.  And yes, there are a few correctly spelled words in the paragraph.

Triodion

As the Triodion begins this Sunday with The Publican and The Pharisee, I commend to you this excellent article by V. Rev. Fr. George Morelli, PhD.

I love how we prepare to prepare.

Boots

You know it has been a long time since you wore your snow boots when you put your foot inside it, feel a bump, take your foot out, reach in and pull out a tiny (dead) mole.  UGH!  Said boots are in the trash!  I shall be shopping at the end of the season for a new pair.

Update

Did you ever notice that when it has been some time since your last entry, you are reluctant to write?  Why is that?  It’s rather silly.  Or that you feel like you need to defend yourself to your readers as to why you’ve not posted an entry?  LOL!

I learned a very interesting thing from my Spanish professor.  For a string of letters to be considered an acronym, the acronym must be pronounceable.  For example, HUAC (House Un-American Committee) is an acronym because it is pronounced hue-ack; COPS (Community Oriented Policing Services) is an acronym.  However, NBA (National Basketball Association) and MBA (Major League Baseball Association) are not.

I think that is so cool…but then again, I am easily amused.

Be Thou My Vision

A beautiful hymn…here are the words.  May the prayer edify you.  The melody can be heard here.

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,