What are we listening to?

So often we've talked on a "What are we listening to" day and discussed the positive effects of music. And there are many!

Did you know that there are negative effects to music as well? If we immerse our minds in sad, dark compositions, or if we constantly listen to discordant, minor pieces, we can't help but be affected in negative ways. (And there's research to back me up!)

Certainly the lovely, melancholy strains of Chopin are wonderful to listen to. A lively modern jazz band can perk us up. Songs that narrate difficult and depressing times in people's lives are eye-opening, to be sure. But a diet of only sentimental and sad songs can drag us down. The minor chords and choppy melodies of jazz aren't a good diet for us, psychologically. And immersing our minds in the words of someone who is detailing a very dark time in their life can be quite depressing to the most cheerful listener!  (The Negative Effects of Music, Robert Assagioli)

How much better it is to sing, hum, and think about the words of some of our favorite positive and uplifting songs!

The picture above made me think of the song, "His Hand in Mine." What are we listening to today?

You may ask me how I know my Lord is real
You may doubt the things I say and doubt the way I feel
But I know He's real today He'll always be
I can feel His hand in mine and that's enough for me

I will never walk alone He holds my hand
He will guide each step I take
And if I fall, I know He'll understand

Till the day He tells me why He loves me so
I can feel His hand in mine that's all I need to know

I will never walk alone He holds my hand
He will guide each step I take
And if I fall, I know He'll understand

Rizpah, fighting vultures

Are you surprised that we are still talking about Rizpah this week? Oh, there's more to be found in our passage from II Samuel. Let's refresh our memory, and then I will tell you about it!

During the reign of David, there was a famine for three successive years; so David sought the face of the Lord. The Lord said, “It is on account of Saul and his blood-stained house; it is because he put the Gibeonites to death.”

2 The king summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not a part of Israel but were survivors of the Amorites; the Israelites had sworn to spare them, but Saul in his zeal for Israel and Judah had tried to annihilate them.) 3 David asked the Gibeonites, “What shall I do for you? How shall I make atonement so that you will bless the Lord’s inheritance?”

4 The Gibeonites answered him, “We have no right to demand silver or gold from Saul or his family, nor do we have the right to put anyone in Israel to death.”

“What do you want me to do for you?” David asked.

5 They answered the king, “As for the man who destroyed us and plotted against us so that we have been decimated and have no place anywhere in Israel, 6 let seven of his male descendants be given to us to be killed and their bodies exposed before the Lord at Gibeah of Saul—the Lord’s chosen one.”

So the king said, “I will give them to you.”

7 The king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath before the Lord between David and Jonathan son of Saul. 8 But the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons of Aiah’s daughter Rizpah,whom she had borne to Saul, together with the five sons of Saul’s daughter Merab,[a] whom she had borne to Adriel son of Barzillai the Meholathite. 9 He handed them over to the Gibeonites, who killed them and exposed their bodies on a hill before the Lord. All seven of them fell together; they were put to deathduring the first days of the harvest, just as the barley harvest was beginning.

10 Rizpah daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest till the rain poured down from the heavens on the bodies, she did not let the birds touch them by day or the wild animals by night. 11 When David was told what Aiah’s daughter Rizpah, Saul’s concubine, had done, 12 he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh Gilead. (They had stolen their bodies from the public square at Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hung them after they struck Saul down on Gilboa.) 13 David brought the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from there, and the bones of those who had been killed and exposed were gathered up.

14 They buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan in the tomb of Saul’s father Kish, at Zela in Benjamin, and did everything the king commanded. After that, God answered prayer in behalf of the land.

Last week we studied the lessons that Rizpah had for us on grieving, on love, on prayer, and more. This week I want to look at this just a little differently.

You may recall that we said Rizpah was one of Saul's concubines . . . did you know what her name means? I thought this was pretty ironic -- her name means "hot or glowing stone." In today's words, I guess they would say she was beautiful, or "hot"! This beautiful woman has been of great service to King Saul, for sons were awfully important in that day, and she had two.

We read about the history of the Gibeonites and the Israelites, and how Joshua was deceived into agreement on a treaty. Perhaps King Saul decided that the Gibeonites were deserving of extermination because of their deceit. Perhaps he was caught up in the heat of battle and just kept on going, killing Gibeonites that were supposed to be protected by the treaty. Whatever the reason, God was not pleased -- He takes our promises seriously, and we should, too!

When King David approaches them, the Gibeonites don't want money. They want Saul's family wiped out -- just like their people were massacred. They want seven men to be impaled -- and that is where we met Rizpah last week. Her two boys (now grown) were in the group to be killed. Her response is to guard their bodies.

We talked about how she would have needed to guard them from scavenging birds and vultures, and from beasts on the ground, as well. She will demonstrate her great love in the coming months. A king will be moved by her devotion, and will be shamed into removing the bodies (and recovering the bodies of Saul and Jonathan) and giving them proper burials.

Rizpah also calls all of us as Christian women, to keep the vultures and beasts away from our children, our families, and our fellow Christians. This is what we will study this week; I hope you will join me again next time.

Friday slowdown

Nothing good that I have done, nothing but the blood of Jesus . . .

Rizpah, the power of one, part III

Are you ready? Today we are going to see some lessons that Rizpah teaches us . . . she might step on our toes, so let's look closely.

The first lesson Rizpah teaches us is that it's OK to grieve. Many of our lives have been touched by loss. Whether the loss of a parent, or a child, or a friend, we've known sorrow. We have friends and acquaintances that have experienced tragedy as well. No matter what we have been through ourselves, we cannot know the pain that another person is dealing with. Everyone is different, and their experiences color their grieving. Relationships before the loss can impact how sorrow is handled; some may shove it aside and show a stone face to the world. Some will show their sadness to all. Everyone grieves differently. We must be slow to judge others -- far too often people make snap judgments . . . "it's been x amount of months, why isn't C getting on with his life?"

Some make think that Rizpah hung on to her sorrow for too long. But Rizpah's grief and long period of mourning had a purpose! If she hadn't spent months at her vigil, King David would not have responded as he did. He would not have brought the bodies down for a proper burial; he would not have remembered the bodies of Saul and Jonathan; peace was finally brought to his kingdom and the famine left his land! Genuine grief is not bad. Our Savior wept.

The second lesson Rizpah brings to us is a lesson of love.  Remember what Paul says?  "Love suffers long, love is kind, love endures all things. Love never fails." (I Corinthians 13) Rizpah loved fiercely and completely, and protected her loved ones with all of her strength. Do we love our families and friends this way? Do we love our Lord this way? Are we completely devoted and surrendered to him? Do we persevere in prayer until we receive an answer? Rizpah spread out her sackcloth on the rocks near her sons, and was determined to stay there as long as it took!

Here's the wonderful part -- David was an earthly king; he was a sinful man, though he had a heart after God. He was sometimes impure, and sometimes wrongly motivated. But he heard and yielded to Rizpah's demands. How much more will our heavenly Father hear us? Listen to what Jesus said in Luke:

                        Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”

6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

(Luke 18:1-8)

Do you think Jesus might have been remembering Rizpah when he told that parable to His disciples? Jesus was impressing upon them the need to be persistent in our prayers. He knows our needs before we ask Him, and He tells us to "ask...seek...knock" -- did you know that those words in the gospel are words that have a meaning of continuing? Not just once, but keep asking, seeking, and knocking. We are to be prayer warriors, and be persistent, as Rizpah was.

When you are tempted to give up, pray again! When you are tempted to just let it go, remember Rizpah!

Lastly, Rizpah is a reminder to us about what can atone for sin. Years after the treaty with the Gibeonites, Saul breaks that treaty -- his sin causes a great famine. Blood is what the Gibeonites say is needed. All of us are sinners . . . and nothing but the blood of our Savior can cleanse us.

                  In Him we have redemption through His blood,the forgiveness of
                  our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace. (Ephesians 1:7)

Rizpah, the power of one, part II

Picture if you will, the dark, tearful eyes of the once-beautiful concubine of a king. Seated on a rough piece of sackcloth, she keeps vigil over the bodies of her two sons. The Law said they should have been buried before sunset on the day they died; yet there they are, and here she is.

It's been months now; her skin is no longer smooth and supple, but brown and burnt from the searing heat of the days. Her hair that used to be a shining mass perhaps twisted into elaborate hairstyles is now matted with sweat and dirt. Her clothing used to be the sumptuous silks and brocades of the ladies of the court, but now it is showing the ravages of wind and weather.

The Bible says that she stayed all day and all night, from barley harvest (sometime late in April) to the early rains (scholars tell us that is in October). She is keeping the scavenger beasts and the predatory birds away from the bodies of her boys. By day, she can flap her arms and shout, and by night, she keeps a fire going - if they come too close she can grab a branch from the fire and brandish it at the animals. Ever sat by a campfire and see the glowing eyes of "something" back in the brush, away from the flames? Not a comfortable feeling, but it's her world for over five long months. A world that used to include living sons; but now she will never hear those voices or hug them again. In fact, they are exposed to shame as well as the elements and beasts. All of these things must have pierced her mothering heart. Many of us can understand at least some of what Rizpah dealt with; many of us have suffered the loss of a child, or another tragedy that simply takes one's breath away and then weighs on the chest.

How difficult it is sometimes for our mortal minds to wrap around the fact that sins have consequences. These consequences may be revisited on the sinner, or they may "come home to roost" with the family or a family member. "But that's not fair," we bluster. "That's not right." But all through the scriptures we see that sins affect other people, not just the sinner. Maybe it's not really fair that these two sons of Saul and the five grandsons should suffer for their father and grandfather's sins. Or that Rizpah suffered. But it's a fact; it's part of the fall from grace; we suffer sometimes because of what we do, and we sometimes suffer because of what others do. You may remember, though, if you've studied in Deuteronomy, that in chapter 24 the law prohibits punishment of a son for his father's sins. Well now..... we don't see that God rebukes David for taking this action. What gives? It just may be that the Gibeonites (and David) were being just; it could be that Saul was not the only one involved in this. It's possible that the two sons of Rizpah and the five grandsons of Saul were also involved in this murder of protected people.

And so Rizpah is still here; she is still grieving, still loving and praying. What a lesson she is for those of us who are parents and grandparents. Or for those of us who are responsible for some of the flock at our church. Our children are most certainly going to go astray; they will sin; but we should never, ever cut them off from our love. Rizpah knew that. But how in the world did she get through these months of effort, ordeal, sadness? There is only one thing powerful enough to get her though, and that is love.

This is not pink and red, frothy lace, sweet satin, delicate scents, and not even chocolate -- this is steely determination wrapped in love. This is strong legs and a stout heart because of love. This is wipe-away-the-tears-and-work kind of love. Rizpah is one of the best examples of perseverance in the Bible! And if we recall what Paul said in Romans:

                       And not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know
                       that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character,
                       hope. (Romans 5:3-4)

Her perseverance did produce hope, and she got through this. Did she accomplish anything? Did any good come from this?  Oh, yes!
Verse 11 told us that someone told David what Rizpah had done. When he heard of her powerful love, her sacrifice, it touched his heart and it got him thinking. He not only took steps to give a decent burial to her two sons, he also took care of the other five men. And that's not all! His conscience was also pricked as he recalled that when King Saul and his son Jonathan were killed, they had not received a proper burial, either!

The verse tells us that he went and took the bones of Saul and of Jonathan, Saul's son, from the men of Jabeshgilead (who had stolen them from the street of Bethshan, when the Philistines hanged them) and he buried them in the land that belonged to the Benjamites. Did any good come from Rizpah's situation, and from her perseverance? Ah, yes, it's the power of one!

The power of one woman to remind a king of how things should be done. The power of one woman to spur him to action.  The power of one woman to make the nation take a look at the evil that had happened. The power of one woman to set a nation on its heels as they watch the long-overdue and proper burials. The power of one woman as that nation is reminded of the one true God during those burials.

Yes, Rizpah can inspire us with the lesson of how powerful one person can be. But there are other lessons she has for us. We'll explore some of them tomorrow.

Verses that inspire

Many of us have been in church more times than we can count. We've listened to countless sermons and lessons.

We've heard the Word of God referred to as "bread" and as "meat." We remember the verse in which Paul wants us to "grow up" and be ready for the "meat" contained in the Word, not just the "milk" that new Christians desire and need.

Do we really practice what we preach?

Here's what I mean . . . let's say that we have a very busy morning. Things are really moving quickly, and all we have time for is a quick cup of coffee or tea. We'll get something later, we tell ourselves.

Lunchtime arrives, and we're on our way to the doctor, or to the store, or we're overwhelmed with quieting a child. We roll our eyes inwardly and tell ourselves, well, it won't be that long till dinner.

By the time suppertime arrives, we are REALLY HUNGRY!! We make sure we have a nice meal, and boy, does it taste good!

Ahem.

How long does it take, how many hours (or even days?) until we are REALLY HUNGRY to get into God's Word? How many times do we miss our time with Him? Does our spiritual stomach demand that we sit down and devour His Word?

                       The judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether.They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. (Psalm 19:9-10)

          I  have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread. (Job 23:12)

When I discovered your words, I devoured them. They are my joy and my heart's delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God of Heaven's Armies.(Jeremiah 15:16)

 (While these verses inspired me, they also convicted me this week. Can someone pass me the box of band-aids for my sore toes? I will put some on, and then get into His Word....)

Rizpah - the power of one

Who is Rizpah? Have you heard of her, and her tragic story? I believe that we can learn a lot from Rizpah, and there's so much that we will study her for two weeks! Her story is found in II Samuel, chapter 21:

Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David inquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites. And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.) Wherefore David said unto the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I make the atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of the LORD? And the Gibeonites said unto him, We will have no silver nor gold of Saul, nor of his house; neither for us shalt thou kill any man in Israel. And he said, What ye shall say, that will I do for you. And they answered the king, The man that consumed us, and that devised against us that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the coasts of Israel, Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD did choose. And the king said, I will give them. But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the LORD's oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul. But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bare unto Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite: And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the hill before the LORD: and they fell all seven together, and were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first days, in the beginning of barley harvest. And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread it for her upon the rock, from the beginning of harvest until water dropped upon them out of heaven, and suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night. And it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done. And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabeshgilead, which had stolen them from the street of Bethshan, where the Philistines had hanged them, when the Philistines had slain Saul in Gilboa: And he brought up from thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son; and they gathered the bones of them that were hanged. And the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son buried they in the country of Benjamin in Zelah, in the sepulchre of Kish his father: and they performed all that the king commanded. And after that God was intreated for the land".

Rizpah is first mentioned to us as the concubine of King Saul. Way back in the third chapter of II Samuel, she is a victim of abuse, or at least a victim of slander. After the death of the king, the general of Saul's army, Abner, is accused of having sexual relations with Rizpah, Saul's concubine. At that time, having sex (whether it was rape, or consensual sex) with one of the king's women meant that you were setting yourself up in authority -- that you were taking over the kingdom.  One of Saul's sons, Ishbosheth, suspects that the general has been paying way more attention to Rizpah than to the armies . . . now, Abner denies it vehemently, but the damage is done: Rizpah's reputation and her standing at the court are both gone! She is the victim; it's all at her expense. (By the way, Abner transferred his loyalties to David, who would become the king.)

The second time we hear of Rizpah, is the tragic story we just read. To truly understand, I think we need a little background, don't you? Let's dive in!

Many, many years ago (400 years before, to be exact) there was an incident where some of the inhabitants of the Promised Land tricked Joshua, the leader of the children of Israel. Some of the Canaanites, called the Gibeonites, deceived him into making a treaty with them. If you'd like to go back and check it out, just flip over to Joshua 9:3-27 for a refresher. God had said that He would go with the Israelites and make it possible for them to possess the land - the Gibeonites heard they were coming and wanted to keep on living . . . so they threw some road dust on each other, and made out like they had traveled a long, long way. They told Joshua that they were foreigners who wanted to serve the living God, when actually they were from settlements very close by. Joshua gave his word that they would not be killed; he covenanted with them and guaranteed their security. Oy. See what happens when you don't do what God tells you? (Grin) Well, Joshua was tricked, and the Israelites had to honor his pledge.

Now, back to our story in II Samuel. King David and his people are experiencing a drought. Not just a gee-I-wish-it-would-rain-and-fill-up-the-lake kind of drought, but a Three. Year. Drought. In Deuteronomy, we see that famine was often a whap on the head for the people -- a way of getting their attention and chastising them. God would sometimes make the heaven brass and the ground fruitless in order to bring them to repentance, and bring them back to Himself.

So, David inquires, Lord, why the drought?

God tells him why. Several years ago, King Saul brought a 400 year old treaty and tried to exterminate the Gibeonites. I can just imagine David thinking, "Oh, snap, I remember that now!" Or some such thoughts . . . so in spite of the fact that Joshua made the treaty hundreds of years earlier, and in spite of the fact that it was King Saul's fault, not his own, David and his people are suffering.

                   But if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the Lord; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out. (Numbers 32:23)

God takes keeping our word very seriously! So David approaches the Gibeonites and asks them what they would accept as an atonement - some sacrifice for Saul's offence. One would suppose that he expected them to come back with a request for gold, or for silver and jewels, or for the watering rights for their flocks, or something similar. But no! There was no material compensation that would make things right. What they wanted was life for life -- and they requested seven male offspring of Saul. Two were Rizpah's sons Armoni and Mephibosheth (not the same one who was Jonathan's son, and beloved by King David), and the other five were Saul's grandsons.

David reluctantly gave his permission for these seven to be turned over to the Gibeonites; they were executed and then hanged. To add insult to injury, even if the gruesome death is not enough, they aren't going to be granted a proper burial. They will be left to hand in the open air, exposed to the elements and to scavenging beasts.

And that is where our heroine, Rizpah, comes in. She is only one. But we'll see she is powerful, when we study again next time.