sit with
What are some small ways you can show up for a friend this weekend, and more long-term?
1 Samuel 1:18
“Please think well of me, your servant,” Hannah said [to Eli]. Then the woman went on her way, ate some food, and her face was no longer downcast.
At Daily Ripple, we use the Rev. Dr. Wil Gafney’s lectionary to plan out our weekly readings. The way she divided up Hannah’s story, we end this week on this verse.
We’ve journeyed with Hannah through her desperate prayer for a son and various people’s response. …Now, we close unsure whether she ever gets the baby she yearns for.
I treasure this invitation share in Hannah’s uncertainty.
In life’s liminal moments, where there’s no action left to take but wait — for pregnancy or medical results, an anticipated passing or acceptance/rejection letter — words fail. We don’t know what will come, though we can hope.
Pausing Hannah’s story here, we don’t abandon her to wait alone. We don’t rush to a happy ending that doesn’t always come.
We just…sit with her.
Think of a person in your life who may need someone to sit with them in their pain. Maybe they’re going through something the world doesn’t acknowledge as grief; maybe their grief has lasted a while and the world expects them to “get over it.”
What are some small ways you can show up for them this weekend, and more long-term? Reflect on Hannah’s story or check out this Kate Bowler article if you need inspiration.