The Painful Joy of Letting Go
- davidwperk
- Jun 17
- 7 min read
Devotional Reflection, Tuesday, June 17, 2025
Proper 6, the week of the second Sunday after Pentecost
The Rev. David W. Perkins, Th.D.
Key phrase for reflection in today’s reading:
21The man Elkanah and all his household went up to offer to the LORD the yearly sacrifice, and to pay his vow. 22But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, "As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, that he may appear in the presence of the LORD, and remain there forever; I will offer him as a nazirite for all time.”
. . . .
24When she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine. She brought him to the house of the LORD at Shiloh; and the child was young. 25Then they slaughtered the bull, and they brought the child to Eli. 26And she said, "Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the LORD. 27For this child I prayed; and the LORD has granted me the petition that I made to him. 28Therefore I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives, he is given to the LORD." She left him there for the LORD.
(Y9u will find the full text of today’s Old Testament reading at the end of this reflection.)
Daily Office Lectionary Readings (BCP, 970)
AM Psalm 78:1-39; PM Psalm 78:40-72
1 Samuel 1:21-2:11; Acts 1:15-26; Luke 20:19-26
David’s Reflections
The British poet Christopher Smart summarized the saga of Hannah and the birth of Samuel in a poem entitled “Hope.”
Ah! Hannah, why shouldst thou despair,
Quick to the tabernacle speed;
There on thy knees prefer thy prayer,
And there thy cause to mercy plead.
Her pious breathings now ascend,
As from her heart the sighs she heaves;
And angels to her suit attend,
‘Till strong in hope she now conceives.
Then Samuel soon was brought to light
To serve the Lord, as yet a child—
O what a heart-reviving sight!
Sure cherubims and seraphs smiled.*
Hannah, barren and bereft, prayed for a child, making a vow that her child would be given to God for the service of the sanctuary. Her prayer was answered, and Samuel was born. Abraham felt called to offer Isaac as a sacrifice after waiting years for his birth. Hannah vowed to surrender her child to the service of God after years of barrenness and waiting. Today’s reading describes that giving over of Samuel and records the Song of Hannah. In Smart’s words, “O what a heart-reviving sight!”
The words of 1:28 have such a poignant ring. “‘Therefore I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives, he is given to the LORD.’ She left him there for the LORD.” The narrative omits any description of the details of their parting, leaving the reader with these emotionally charged words and our imaginations. We can speculate that the separation was painful. Keeping Samuel until he was weaned (between 2 and 3 years) only delayed that separation temporarily.
Hannah had to let Samuel go after longing for a child and after finally birthing one. The shame of her barren state (a serious deficiency in her culture) had given way to the joy of becoming a mother. Yet, from the outset, she was not to be blessed with the boy’s companionship and with the joys that come from nurturing a child to adulthood. For the joy of motherhood Hannah had willed the pain of separation and letting go.
Her sacrifice brings to mind a central tension in Christian living; the greatest and most recurrent joys come only by releasing what is most precious and valuable. Jesus put it well when he said, “He who would save his life must lose it,” a saying that all four Gospels emphasize. Could we imagine that Jesus’ deepest joys come as he shares in our transformation? Yet, our transformation comes about only on the basis of Jesus’ ultimate act of letting go, releasing himself into God’s hands to suffer crucifixion.
Hannah’s dilemma, that poignant tension, becomes a parable of our own. In clinging to God’s gifts of relationships, resources, time, energy and life itself, we lose our freedom and joy. We become possessed by what God has given us. We struggle with anxiety about losing that to which we cling. In releasing and letting go of what has become so dear that we can’t imagine being without it. we find our deepest joy and meaning. That tension keeps us in an excruciating and complex process of letting go.
Henri Nouwen put it so well.
"To be able to enjoy fully the many good things the world has to offer, we must be detached from them. To be detached does not mean to be indifferent or uninterested. It means to be nonpossessive. Life is a gift to be grateful for and not a property to cling to.” #
The prayer attributed to St. Francis captures this quite well.
O, Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. (Book of common Prayer, p. 833)
*Christopher Smart, Hymns for the Amusement of Children. (1791)
#Henri J. M. Nouwen, Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith (New York: Harper, 1997), February 20.
Collect of the Day, Proper 6, the second Sunday after Pentecost
Keep, O Lord, your household the Church in your steadfast faith and love, that through your grace we may proclaim your truth with boldness, and minister your justice with compassion; for the sake of our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (BCP, 230)
A Collect for Peace
O God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom: Defend us, your humble servants, in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in your defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries; through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (BCP, 99)
For the Departed
Almighty God, we remember before you today your faithful servant N.; and we pray that, having opened to him the gates of larger life, you will receive him more and more into your joyful service, that, with all who have faithfully served you in the past, he may share in the eternal victory of Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (BCP, 253)
A Prayer for Light
Grant us, Lord, the lamp of charity which never fails, that it may burn in us and shed its light on those around us, and that by its brightness we may have a vision of that holy City, where dwells the true and never-failing Light, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (BCP, 110)
A Collect for Mission
Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. (BCP, 100)
Daily Office Old Testament Reading, 1 Samuel 1:21-2:11
21The man Elkanah and all his household went up to offer to the LORD the yearly sacrifice, and to pay his vow. 22But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, "As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, that he may appear in the presence of the LORD, and remain there forever; I will offer him as a nazirite for all time." 23Her husband Elkanah said to her, "Do what seems best to you, wait until you have weaned him; only--may the LORD establish his word." So the woman remained and nursed her son, until she weaned him. 24When she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine. She brought him to the house of the LORD at Shiloh; and the child was young. 25Then they slaughtered the bull, and they brought the child to Eli. 26And she said, "Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the LORD. 27For this child I prayed; and the LORD has granted me the petition that I made to him. 28Therefore I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives, he is given to the LORD." She left him there for the LORD.
2:1Hannah prayed and said, "My heart exults in the LORD; my strength is exalted in my God. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in my victory. 2"There is no Holy One like the LORD, no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. 3Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed. 4The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble gird on strength. 5Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry are fat with spoil. The barren has borne seven, but she who has many children is forlorn. 6The LORD kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up. 7The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low, he also exalts. 8He 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. 9"He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness; for not by might does one prevail. 10The LORD! His adversaries shall be shattered; the Most High will thunder in heaven. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king, and exalt the power of his anointed."
11 Then Elkanah went home to Ramah, while the boy remained to minister to the LORD, in the presence of the priest Eli.
Daily Prayer Offices in The Book of Common Prayer
Morning Prayer, Rite 2, page 75, Book of Common Prayer
Noonday Prayer, p. 103, Book of Common Prayer
Order of Worship for Evening (Vespers), p. 109, Book of Common Prayer
Evening Prayer, Rite 2, page 115, Book of Common Prayer
Compline (Night Prayer), Page 127, Book of Common Prayer
Daily Devotionals, page 136, Book of Common Prayer
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