Hannah has just vowed if God will give her a son she will give that boy back to the Lord. I’ve been reading 1 Samuel as a storyteller, looking for characters, patterns and cross references. So WHEN are we? Early the next morning. Hold onto your time clauses because we are about to leap years […]
From weeping to eating, A Storytellers’ Bible Study 1 Sam 1:12-18
In the shadow of the tabernacle, Hannah the wife of Elkanah is kneeling, praying, weeping. I’ve been reading through her story, looking for the characters, cross references and patterns—the things storytellers look for. She’s praying in desperation for the Lord to look on her, remember her. But the first person who looks at her is […]
A Storyteller’s Bible Study—1 Sam 1:7-18
Crying, fighting, not eating—no this isn’t me finishing an anime binge. This is Hannah, the woman we met reading the first two paragraphs of the Biblical book of 1 Samuel. I’m reading through the Bible looking for the things that storytellers look for, strong characters, cross references and patterns. In verses 1-6, we saw “a […]
A Storyteller’s Bible Study—1 Samuel Soap Opera
When I sit down to retell a story from Scripture, first thing I need is a close read. I look word by word and scribble on (not down) everything I notice. Then I have a list of questions I ask. Who, When, Where, Why, How? Are there any translation notes? Are there any cross references, […]
Tel Aviv, First 24 Hours
How can I be in my late twenties and never have used an ATM? I’m not sure what this says about my spending habits—good things I hope. But I had blithely read in all the tourist manuals when they told me to skip the airport currency exchange. They said you could get better rates at Tel […]
Best Travel Advice
There are two responses we get telling people we’re going to Israel for three months. The first one is, “So what will do you there?” The second is, “Oh, I’ve been to the Holy Land. You have to go see/hear/eat…” followed by a travel guide’s worth of suggested locations that would overwhelm even Joshua’s itinerary […]
Samuel Hears The Voice
“Samuel.” Samuel lifted his head. “Samuel.” The boy rolled off his sleeping pallet and slipped through the heavy brocade of the lamp-lit sanctuary. He ran, light on the balls of his feet, to the end of the curtained corridor where the high priest Eli slept on a cot. The old man was loosing his eyesight. […]
