Raised Up
Stories
Contents
“Raised Up” by Peter Andrew Smith
“Grumbling About the Menu” by Frank Ramirez
Raised Up
by Peter Andrew Smith
Ephesians 2:1-10
Jane walked faster and hoped to see something familiar. She never should have left the path she was on when she entered the woods. Of course when we she made her way down the dirt road she wasn’t thinking about where she was going. She just wanted to be away. Away from the pain tearing at her heart. Away from the reality that her world was never going to be the same.
She thought she recognized the clump of trees ahead and made her way toward them. Spring break was supposed to be a time to relax and get away from everything. Her plans to spend time with her friends, though, went out the window when the call came that Gran was seriously ill. Jane got on a bus and began the long trip from school to the family homestead. Every time her phone beeped she prayed that Gran was still alive before she looked to read the update from her brother. It was a relief when the bus pulled into town and Jane finally made it to the hospital.
She wept as she sat beside the bed of the woman who had loved and cherished her, who had encouraged and supported her, who had taken her to church and shared her faith. Gran was Jane’s inspiration and her anchor and Jane told her that one more time. Being able to say goodbye as Gran took her last breath was the hardest thing Jane had ever done in her life but she felt blessed to have that final moment with the woman she loved so dearly.
After they left the hospital and made their way home it struck her. Gran was gone. When she gathered with her mother and brothers and they started telling stories Jane found that she couldn’t handle it any more. The thoughts and emotions were too much and she needed a break. She went outside and started to walk. She walked down the dirt road and into the woods. She walked without paying attention to where she was going and now she wasn’t exactly sure where she was.
She reached that clump of trees that she thought led back home but nothing was familiar. She could feel the blood pumping in her ears and she realized that she was nowhere near the road. How could this happen to her? As a girl, Gran had taken her among these trees to watch the animals, to admire the flowers, and to listen to the birds. When Jane was older she used to wander through these woods all the time by herself. Now though she was lost.
Jane slumped against a tree and felt her face grow wet with tears. She missed Gran with all her heart. She knew in her head that Gran was old and her body had given out but she still wished Gran were here to hold her and tell her everything would be alright. Gran had been so strong when Dad died. Her faith was so certain she never moved. Jane frowned. She remembered telling Gran that one day and Gran shaking her head and saying: “My faith moves me all the time because unless I’m willing to be lifted up I never see the way God opens through grace.”
Jane thought about that for a moment. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Lord, I don’t know where I am. I’m lost in the woods and I’m lost without Gran. Help me, Amen. Jane listened to the wind and the rustle of the leaves. She was starting to sink into despair again when she heard the bells. She scrambled to her feet. The bells on the church near Gran’s house chimed on the hour. Jane could hear them in the distance but she had no idea what direction they were coming from because of the wind.
Jane grabbed the branch of the tree and hauled herself up. She climbed like she hadn’t climbed since she was a little girl and suddenly her head burst forth from the trees. She looked around and quickly saw the dirt road which lead home. Jane took her bearings and carefully made her way down the tree.
She started back toward the house certain of where she was and where she was going. She thought about Gran with each step. Gran was gone but she had left Jane with the legacy of a rich and living faith. Jane move forward confident that she could face the funeral and her loss because she trusted that God would lift her up through and show her the way.
* * *
Grumbling About the Menu
by Frank Ramirez
Numbers 21:4-9
The Lord sent seraph serpents against the people. They bit the people and many of the Isarelites died. ….Then the Lord said to Moses, “Make a seraph figure and mount it on a standard….” (Numbers 21:6 & 8, JPS translation).
Herodotus (c. 484 BC - c. 425 BC) was born in the city of Halicarnassus, located in Asia Minor. It was a Greek colony, and Heroditus entered the world as part of a highly-respected Greek family.
For the first half of his life, however, his hometown was ruled by tyrants supported by the Persians. Some think that this is why, having finished a basic education, Herodotus began to pursue both travel and reading. He visited many of the most famous cities of the ancient world, saw their great wonders, asked questions and learned whatever he could about the local histories, social customs, as well as the animals that lived there. He wrote extensively about what he learned.
His history is considered one of the great classics, not only of the ancient world, but for all time.
In Book II of his history, he spends time writing about animals that are considered sacred in Egypt. These include the otter, the eel, a bird called the Phoenix, (which he admits “I myself have never seen, except in pictures. Indeed it is a great rarity, even in Egypt….”) and then, after describing “some sacred serpents which are perfectly harmless,” which happen to have two horns, and are buried in the Temple of Zeus after they die, he talks about one particular breed of snake that would be interesting to anyone who has read Numbers 21:4-9. Here’s what he wrote:
“I went once to a certain place in Arabia, almost exactly opposite the city of But, to make inquiries concerning the winged serpents. On my arrival I saw the back-bones and ribs of serpents in such numbers as it is impossible to describe: of the ribs there were a multitude of heaps, some great, some small, some middle-sized. The place where the bones lie is at the entrance of a narrow gorge between steep mountains, which there open upon a spacious plain communicating with the great plain of Egypt. The story goes that with the spring the winged snakes come flying from Arabia towards Egypt, but are met in this gorge by the birds called ibises, who forbid their entrance and destroy them all. The Arabians assert, and the Egyptians also admit, that it is on account of the service thus rendered that the Egyptians hold the ibis in so much reverence.” (History, Book II, section 75)
Herodotus clarifies it is the black ibis that attacks the flying serpents. He then concludes, regarding the flying snake: “The winged serpent is shaped like the water-snake. Its wings are not feathered, but resemble very closely those of the bat. And thus I conclude the subject of the sacred animals.”
Flying snakes were part of the lore of Egypt. Tutankhamen’s throne, for instance, displayed a four-winged snake, two wings of which formed the throne’s armrests.
What does this story by Herodotus have to do with the Biblical passage of Numbers 21:4-9? Hundreds of years before Herodotus wrote this account of flying serpents we are told that God’s people grumbled in the wllderness and in response God sent what? The words are often translated simply as “serpent,” but as the Jewish Publication Society translation shows, these were “seraph serpents.” The word seraph is sometimes used in scripture to describe an angel, but in places like Isaiah 14:29 and 30:6 the seraph is a flying serpent.
Whatever it was God’s people encountered in the desert, and whatever you may think about Egyptian legends concerning flying snakes, it certainly sounds that’s exactly what the people encountered in the desert after they grumbled about what was on the menu.
*****************************************
StoryShare, March 11, 2018, issue.
Copyright 2017 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
“Raised Up” by Peter Andrew Smith
“Grumbling About the Menu” by Frank Ramirez
Raised Up
by Peter Andrew Smith
Ephesians 2:1-10
Jane walked faster and hoped to see something familiar. She never should have left the path she was on when she entered the woods. Of course when we she made her way down the dirt road she wasn’t thinking about where she was going. She just wanted to be away. Away from the pain tearing at her heart. Away from the reality that her world was never going to be the same.
She thought she recognized the clump of trees ahead and made her way toward them. Spring break was supposed to be a time to relax and get away from everything. Her plans to spend time with her friends, though, went out the window when the call came that Gran was seriously ill. Jane got on a bus and began the long trip from school to the family homestead. Every time her phone beeped she prayed that Gran was still alive before she looked to read the update from her brother. It was a relief when the bus pulled into town and Jane finally made it to the hospital.
She wept as she sat beside the bed of the woman who had loved and cherished her, who had encouraged and supported her, who had taken her to church and shared her faith. Gran was Jane’s inspiration and her anchor and Jane told her that one more time. Being able to say goodbye as Gran took her last breath was the hardest thing Jane had ever done in her life but she felt blessed to have that final moment with the woman she loved so dearly.
After they left the hospital and made their way home it struck her. Gran was gone. When she gathered with her mother and brothers and they started telling stories Jane found that she couldn’t handle it any more. The thoughts and emotions were too much and she needed a break. She went outside and started to walk. She walked down the dirt road and into the woods. She walked without paying attention to where she was going and now she wasn’t exactly sure where she was.
She reached that clump of trees that she thought led back home but nothing was familiar. She could feel the blood pumping in her ears and she realized that she was nowhere near the road. How could this happen to her? As a girl, Gran had taken her among these trees to watch the animals, to admire the flowers, and to listen to the birds. When Jane was older she used to wander through these woods all the time by herself. Now though she was lost.
Jane slumped against a tree and felt her face grow wet with tears. She missed Gran with all her heart. She knew in her head that Gran was old and her body had given out but she still wished Gran were here to hold her and tell her everything would be alright. Gran had been so strong when Dad died. Her faith was so certain she never moved. Jane frowned. She remembered telling Gran that one day and Gran shaking her head and saying: “My faith moves me all the time because unless I’m willing to be lifted up I never see the way God opens through grace.”
Jane thought about that for a moment. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Lord, I don’t know where I am. I’m lost in the woods and I’m lost without Gran. Help me, Amen. Jane listened to the wind and the rustle of the leaves. She was starting to sink into despair again when she heard the bells. She scrambled to her feet. The bells on the church near Gran’s house chimed on the hour. Jane could hear them in the distance but she had no idea what direction they were coming from because of the wind.
Jane grabbed the branch of the tree and hauled herself up. She climbed like she hadn’t climbed since she was a little girl and suddenly her head burst forth from the trees. She looked around and quickly saw the dirt road which lead home. Jane took her bearings and carefully made her way down the tree.
She started back toward the house certain of where she was and where she was going. She thought about Gran with each step. Gran was gone but she had left Jane with the legacy of a rich and living faith. Jane move forward confident that she could face the funeral and her loss because she trusted that God would lift her up through and show her the way.
* * *
Grumbling About the Menu
by Frank Ramirez
Numbers 21:4-9
The Lord sent seraph serpents against the people. They bit the people and many of the Isarelites died. ….Then the Lord said to Moses, “Make a seraph figure and mount it on a standard….” (Numbers 21:6 & 8, JPS translation).
Herodotus (c. 484 BC - c. 425 BC) was born in the city of Halicarnassus, located in Asia Minor. It was a Greek colony, and Heroditus entered the world as part of a highly-respected Greek family.
For the first half of his life, however, his hometown was ruled by tyrants supported by the Persians. Some think that this is why, having finished a basic education, Herodotus began to pursue both travel and reading. He visited many of the most famous cities of the ancient world, saw their great wonders, asked questions and learned whatever he could about the local histories, social customs, as well as the animals that lived there. He wrote extensively about what he learned.
His history is considered one of the great classics, not only of the ancient world, but for all time.
In Book II of his history, he spends time writing about animals that are considered sacred in Egypt. These include the otter, the eel, a bird called the Phoenix, (which he admits “I myself have never seen, except in pictures. Indeed it is a great rarity, even in Egypt….”) and then, after describing “some sacred serpents which are perfectly harmless,” which happen to have two horns, and are buried in the Temple of Zeus after they die, he talks about one particular breed of snake that would be interesting to anyone who has read Numbers 21:4-9. Here’s what he wrote:
“I went once to a certain place in Arabia, almost exactly opposite the city of But, to make inquiries concerning the winged serpents. On my arrival I saw the back-bones and ribs of serpents in such numbers as it is impossible to describe: of the ribs there were a multitude of heaps, some great, some small, some middle-sized. The place where the bones lie is at the entrance of a narrow gorge between steep mountains, which there open upon a spacious plain communicating with the great plain of Egypt. The story goes that with the spring the winged snakes come flying from Arabia towards Egypt, but are met in this gorge by the birds called ibises, who forbid their entrance and destroy them all. The Arabians assert, and the Egyptians also admit, that it is on account of the service thus rendered that the Egyptians hold the ibis in so much reverence.” (History, Book II, section 75)
Herodotus clarifies it is the black ibis that attacks the flying serpents. He then concludes, regarding the flying snake: “The winged serpent is shaped like the water-snake. Its wings are not feathered, but resemble very closely those of the bat. And thus I conclude the subject of the sacred animals.”
Flying snakes were part of the lore of Egypt. Tutankhamen’s throne, for instance, displayed a four-winged snake, two wings of which formed the throne’s armrests.
What does this story by Herodotus have to do with the Biblical passage of Numbers 21:4-9? Hundreds of years before Herodotus wrote this account of flying serpents we are told that God’s people grumbled in the wllderness and in response God sent what? The words are often translated simply as “serpent,” but as the Jewish Publication Society translation shows, these were “seraph serpents.” The word seraph is sometimes used in scripture to describe an angel, but in places like Isaiah 14:29 and 30:6 the seraph is a flying serpent.
Whatever it was God’s people encountered in the desert, and whatever you may think about Egyptian legends concerning flying snakes, it certainly sounds that’s exactly what the people encountered in the desert after they grumbled about what was on the menu.
*****************************************
StoryShare, March 11, 2018, issue.
Copyright 2017 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
