The Heritage of Children

            When I was a kid, children were beginning to be wanted, not needed.  There was a time when children were required to help on the farm or in the business and it was a great thing for a family to have a number of children.  My father-in-law was one of ten children in his family and was sent out to work on a farm as a child.  Like his brothers he was “farmed out” to work on a neighborhood farm. This was almost a norm in our society.  We had children because we had to have the hands to do the work that was so essential.  In this time, we have come full circle. 

            I read an article the other day talking about how families now have both parents working and are worrying because they don’t have the time to take care of their children.  They are making enough money with two people being employed; but the kids don’t have the full-time care that they would have with a stay at home mom or pop.  We see it in our family.  Our granddaughter and her husband have two small boys.  When their mom is working and the kids don’t have school, they need to find somebody to care for them.  Sometimes, that is Rosie and me.  We love it when one of them comes to spend the day; but I see the anxiety in their mom’s eyes.  She would really love to be home full time to take care of them.  These are good kids who have excellent, loving parents and who will grow up to be good people.  They are obviously loved and nurtured and really have everything that they need.  I have no doubt that they will be excellent adults.

            The section of First Samuel is a wonderful tribute to God who has given to Hannah a child that had been denied to her for years.  She pleaded with God to open her womb and let her have a child and when this happened and her son Samuel was born, she praised God with what looks to me like the Magnificat of the Old Testament 1 Samuel 2: 1-10 . Hannah praises God in these words:

                       

             The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low, he also exalts. He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap; to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the LORD's, and on them he has set the world.

            In Luke’s Gospel, after Mary visited Elizabeth to tell her of her own pregnancy and the coming birth of Jesus, and learned of the coming of the child who would grow up to be John the Baptist, Mary raised her voice in that elegant song of praise that we know as the Magnificat     Luke 1: 46-55. These are songs that come from the hearts of women who know that they are very blessed to be able to look forward to having children who they will nurture and who will grow up under their care.  That is a glorious gift.  All of us who have children know the wonder of that.  And what a gift John and Jesus were to the whole world.  Neither of them lived very long and had tragic endings.  Mary watched as Jesus was crucified and she wept bitter tears. She came to understand the power of God through the resurrection of her son.  We have all been blessed by that incredible event.

            I have also watched when something like that happened. . When a child is lost, it is a terrible tragedy in a family.  I have seen parents struggle for years with that kind of loss.  It certainly defines us.  I know one couple who lost a son who then had a terrible time for several years after that death and who finally came out of it more blessed than I could have imagined.  Grief is a way that we are healed after a tragedy.  It is a miserable time of life and we need care and comfort when we experience it; but it is possible to come through it to a time of renewed hope and promise.

            Samuel was indeed a gift to Hannah.  He went on to greatly bless the Hebrew people.  They had been leaderless for a long time.  Samuel was essentially the last Judge of the Hebrews.  He led them through difficult times when their religion had almost vanished.  Eventually, they demanded a king.  Samuel talked to God who told him to appoint Saul as their king.  He did so and Saul disappointed the people as God was certain that he would.  He then commissioned Samuel to find another king.  He sent him to the house of Jesse where God said that one of his sons would be the next king.  Samuel saw all of the sons of Jesse who were present and none of them was the one designated by God.  Samuel asked the father if that was all of his sons and Jesse replied that there was yet another who was at that moment tending the sheep.  Samuel asked that he be brought home and it turned out that this was David who was the one chosen by God to be the great king of the Hebrews. 

            This is a great story, linking the book of Ruth, who conceived Obed who was the father of Jesse and Samuel who came to anoint Jesse’s son David as the king.  It was the way that God made a new beginning for the Hebrew people. 

            Our children are always a new beginning.  They are the herald of the future and those who tell the story of the past.   My grandson, Michael is a writer.  He will chronicle all of the things that this family of ours has seen and done in our time.  He will be an eloquent voice to remind those who follow that life has a purpose, even when we can’t quite see it.  May God bless all of those who come after this generation of ours.  Our children are our future and they are indeed a gift.