Call to Worship
Women of the faith:
We honor you today.
May you grow in the Spirit,
And may we learn from your wisdom.

Unison Prayer
Thank you for our mothers, for our grandmothers, and for every generation of women in our lives: those who gave us life, those who helped us to grow, and those who love us still.  We especially thank you for those who shared their faith with us and who continue to inspire us today.  Thank you, Lord! 

Words of Assurance: Isaiah 66:13, NIV
As a mother comforts her child, so shall I comfort you, says the Lord.

The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as 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.

Opening Song: Keith & Kristen Getty, Moya Brennan, “A Mother’s Prayer”

Scripture Reading: 2 Timothy 1:1-5, NIV
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, in keeping with the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, my dear son: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

Sunday Sermon

We have a very special Coffee Hour today, filled with foods that our mothers and grandmothers made or that remind us of our moms and grandmoms. My contribution is a Mississippi Mud Pie, a recipe I got from my mom and that I now make for my mom. The pie is famous among my volleyball friends, because it won the prize of “highest ranking dessert made by a Christian at a Jewish barbecue.”

Food is one of the strongest connections to our families: the scent, especially the scent of bacon that motivates us to get out of bed, the scent of dinner before it’s ready, or the all-day scent of a holiday meal that takes hours to prepare. The sounds of chopping, mincing, grinding, blending, frying, mixing and pouring. The sight as everything is laid out, and of course the taste.

I would often forget to say “Good morning” to my mom and instead said, “What’s for dinner?” which of course she hated, but knowing what was for dinner affected the sort of day I would have. My favorite meals growing up included upside down meat pie, tuna fondue, and the rare treat of pancakes and sausages for dinner. If I knew they were coming, I could get through anything.

My dad’s mom made a mushroom pork chop that I was unable to duplicate, and I asked my mom for the recipe. She put it on a postcard and sent it to me. The recipe was: Cook pork chop. Pour Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup over it. Eat and enjoy. My mom’s mom made a special kind of cheeseburger I called “Grandma burgers,” although in retrospect that’s not such a great name. She also made an annual vat of sauce filled with meatballs, sausages, pork chops and anything else she could find. “How do you cook it?” I asked once. She said, “a little bit of this, a little bit of that until it tastes right.” That’s pretty much how I cook today.

It’s great to be remembered for your cooking, but even better to be remembered for your faith. This is what Paul recalls when he writes to Timothy. He remembers the sincere faith of Timothy’s mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois, and is confident that the same faith lives in him My mom’s mom was a “super Catholic” who went to mass every morning before breakfast. My mom was a Catholic, then an Episcopalian, then a Methodist, and is now Episcopalian again. Her faith was quiet in the first half of her life and blossomed in the second, when she became a church leader and a Christian poet. Her faith runs deep, and it’s been a joy for me to discover even more of it over the years.

One of the Bible’s greatest unsung heroes is Hannah. You’ve probably heard of her son Samuel, who was the Lord’s first prophet, who anointed Israel’s first king, who had two books of the Bible named after him and who inspired the song “Here I Am, Lord.” But none of this would have been possible without Hannah.

Hannah is one of Elkanah’s two wives. The other wife keeps getting pregnant, but Hannah does not, and the fertile wife keeps making fun of Hannah, “tormenting and humiliating her and making her cry.” Year after year this goes on, but Hannah holds on to her faith. Every year they visit the Temple. One year she’s praying so fervently that the priest comes out and tells her to “stop drinking and sober up.” She tells him she has not been drinking, she’s been “pouring out her troubles to the Lord,” praying that if she has a son, she will dedicate him to God.

When she returns home, she becomes pregnant. God has kept his promise, so she will keep hers. When Samuel is old enough she returns to the Temple, finds the priest and says, “Remember me? I promised God that if he gave me a son, I would dedicate him to the Lord,” and she drops him off to be raised there. We’re not sure what the priest thinks of this. In a sense, she sacrifices her only son, which should sound somewhat familiar. And then she prays. And the prayer is astonishing. It’s a long prayer, so here are the highlights:

No one is holy like the LORD.
The bows of strong soldiers are broken,
but the weak grow strong.
The people who once were well fed
now hire themselves out to get food,
but the hungry are hungry no more.
The Lord kills and restores to life;
he sends people to the world of the dead
and brings them back again.

Centuries before Jesus, she proclaims that the last shall be first and the first shall be last. But here’s the most remarkable thing: she may be the first person in the Bible to talk about resurrection, and she does so with complete confidence. Because of her incredible faith, God has given her a vision of the world to come. God has not blessed a priest with this insight, but a mom.

Now let’s return to the priest. His name is Eli, and he’s got a good heart, but he’s not very effective. He’s pretty burned out, and he lets his sons, who are described as “scoundrels,” get away with horrible things, like stealing the sacrifices that are offered to God and sleeping with the help. Years pass, and it is said that “there were very few messages from the Lord, and visions from him were quite rare.” Samuel is still living in the Temple. One night he hears a voice calling his name. This is the part everybody knows. Three times he runs to Eli, and Eli says, “I didn’t call you; go back to bed.” The third time Eli realizes what’s going on, and instructs Samuel to say, “Here I am, Lord; your servant is listening.” And he receives his first prophecy, which is about the downfall of Eli and his sons.

Again the Lord has worked in mysterious ways. He has sent the revelation to the mom, and the prophecy to the son, and nothing to the priests. To put it another way, in the midst of a patriarchal society, God has chosen a woman and a child to bear his message. And all of this starts with Hannah, a woman who grows up in an abusive household, holds onto her faith, and passes it on to her son, who holds onto his faith despite being surrounded by scoundrels. And God rewards their sincerity and their perseverance. When God looks at Samuel, he sees Hannah. When Paul looks at Timothy, he sees Lois and Eunice. When you look at me, hopefully you see my mom, and her mom, because I am here thanks to generations of female faith.

So now as we prepare to go to Coffee Hour, to celebrate our moms through recipes and food, may we celebrate them even more through our stories and our faith. Or to combine the two: taste and see that the Lord is good. Amen.

Closing Song: JJ Heller, “A Mother Like You”

Benediction
As a mother hen watches over her chicks,
may God watch over you, keeping you safe and protecting you from harm. Amen.