Frazzled

The angel of the LORD appeared no more to Manoah and to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was the angel of the LORD. And Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, for we have seen God.” But his wife said to him, “If the LORD had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering at our hands, or shown us all these things, or now announced to us such things as these.” And the woman bore a son and called his name Samson. And the young man grew, and the LORD blessed him. And the Spirit of the LORD began to stir him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol. (Judges 13:21-25 ESV). Our reading today comes at the end of a wonderful passage that details the prophecy of the birth of Samson. It is also another example of another unnamed individual who played a prominent role in the purpose of God. Samson’s mother is simply called “the woman.” We know his name, which is Manoah, but not hers. Some might say this is simply a reflection of the culture of the time when women were regarded as inferior. We do know this is true in Jesus’ day. In fact, he spoke to this in several passages. Not only were there female disciples in Jesus’ following, there are other references that point to the equality of women in Jesus’ mind (cf. Mark 7:24-30; Matthew 15:21-28). It is easy to dismiss the notion that Samson’s mother is left unnamed because of some prejudice toward women. The truth is that it simply was not important to the central truth of the story. Neither she, nor her husband, was important to the story’s truth. It is God who does the work to bring a deliverer to the nation. The terror of the moment scatters Manoah’s wits, while his wife rises above it with bracing commonsense. “Use your head,” says Samson’s mother to Samson’s father. They are not yet Samson’s parents. They believe they are not able to have children. But a mysterious stranger has just told them that they are, after all, going to have a son. Then before their astonished eyes the “man of God” rises into the air and disappears! “It’s the Lord himself,” squeaks the husband in terror. “We shall be struck dead. No one can survive seeing God face to face.” “Don’t be stupid,” says the wife. “If we die, how are we going to produce the child he’s promised?” Well, that’s about right!

Isn’t it our common experience how easily we panic when faced with a particularly difficult experience? It is so much better when we are able to keep our wits about us when emotion threatens to blow away clear thinking. Getting frazzled at the circumstance of life denies the sufficiency of our God. The best way to face anything life may have for us is to remember that our God has “got it”! turn your frustrations toward Him and trust that His promise to work good is unfailing!