Pastor Lisa Horst Clark

June 24, 2018

1 Samuel 17:57-18:16

On David’s return from killing the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul, with the head of the Philistine in his hand. Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” And David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”

When David had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was bound to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. Saul took him that day and would not let him return to his father’s house. Then Jonathan made a covenant with David, because he loved him as his own soul. Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that he was wearing, and gave it to David, and his armor, and even his sword and his bow and his belt. David went out and was successful wherever Saul sent him; as a result, Saul set him over the army. And all the people, even the servants of Saul, approved.

As they were coming home, when David returned from killing the Philistine, the women came out of all the towns of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with songs of joy, and with musical instruments. And the women sang to one another as they made merry, “Saul has killed his thousands, and David his ten thousands.” Saul was very angry, for this saying displeased him. He said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed thousands; what more can he have but the kingdom?” So Saul eyed David from that day on. The next day an evil spirit from God rushed upon Saul, and he raved within his house, while David was playing the lyre, as he did day by day. Saul had his spear in his hand; and Saul threw the spear, for he thought, “I will pin David to the wall.” But David eluded him twice.

Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with him but had departed from Saul. So Saul removed him from his presence, and made him a commander of a thousand; and David marched out and came in, leading the army. David had success in all his undertakings; for the Lord was with him. When Saul saw that he had great success, he stood in awe of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David; for it was he who marched out and came in leading them.

Message

I have been trying to find the right way to consume news in general that informs and engages and evokes my sympathies and my abilities to act and doesn’t leave me circling in a pit of hopelessness with numbness and despair.  There are times when I feel this weight and the onslaught of heavy things that I start to feel so stuck that sometimes I find myself searching for good news somewhere in there.  There is this optimist e-mail that the Washington Post sends out and there it compiles all of just the good stories of the week and so I sit there reading stories about kids overcoming the odds, surprising acts of grace, kindness of total strangers and people working together for the common good.  And you know how this works: more often than not I find myself there weeping.  I am a crier by nature and these stories are heartening, but I find myself bringing disproportionate tears, as I am so relieved to hear these stories of human decency.  The floodgates open and there I am balling because I’m so hungry for a picture of promise in the midst of it all.

And so, disclosure time:  I am a straight, white woman who seeks to engage in the work of being an Ally.  I have heard from my LGBTQ kindred how the experience of many has been to look at the Bible and to flinch.  I’ve heard the stories of LGBTQ kids looking through the media and books and movies and what it has meant to see a glimpse of someone that looks like them represented.  And so I am here as a Pastor and someone who seeks to be an Ally and here is this Scripture that the L