and he has just turned the volume down on his Bob Marley's greatest hits cd.  The interns are there, sitting too close for comfort on the futon.  Micahel looks comfortable with a cup of English tea, sitting in the big cush chair.  Mark has his typical perch, a rocker strategically positioned to exit into the main part of the house if needed, to grab Owen or Sibbes from a shelf to his right, or to pull the hair on an intern's leg if he's falling asleep.  Mike Law is in the black office chair, spinning around in circles gleefully whistling, "Whheeeee!" like Opie Taylor.  I look at him with mild disdain.  "Little hockey man."

Mark opens us in prayer... and the sermon review begins.  Each person takes a turn commenting on the sermon, what they appreciated, what was helpful to their own souls, what was unclear, mannerisms that were helpful or distracting, including fashion foibles best exhibited in the privacy of one's own home, helpful advice "for the next time you preach this sermon," constructive feedback on outlines, applications, illustrations and the like. 

Thus begins sermon review with visiting preacher, Dr. Jeremiah Wright.

Text: 1 Sam. 1:1-18

Time: 18 minutes

Introduction (6 min 50 seconds).  Wright began with something of a critique of Watts' painting "Hope."  I don't know that I've ever listened to a sermon that opened with a critique of a picture.  I appreciated his use of it as a foil for his treatment of Hannah's situation in 1 Samuel.  "The illusion of power gives way to the reality of pain."  I also appreciated that Wright brought this home in the introduction by pointing to some cases of people "living in a quiet hell" (wife living with the unfaithful husband; divorced families having their dreams "blown to bits;" college students who seem to have everything but are empty, shallow, hurting and lonely).  Just painting these contemporary faces onto the premise helped stage the main applications.

I'm guessing that if there was an outline to the sermon it was "Hannah experienced the pain of (I) a bitter woman to contend with (v. 7); and (II) a barren womb."  Did anyone catch a clearer outline?

Other things I appreciated: Wright's use of language, very vivid and easy to remember with the alliteration at points.  I appreciated the exhortatoin to keep on praying.  He said the real lesson was "How to hope when the love of God is not plainly evident."  Hannah was "barren in her womb, but fertile in spirit."  That's a pastorally helpful idea, but apart from the simple exhortation to keep praying, he didn't at all unpack how to hope when the love of God is not evident.  Would've been helpful to do so, I think.  Last, I appreciated the touch of traditional African American songs at the end of the sermon. 

Main critiques:

1.  No gospel.  He pointed out that "hope is what saves us" but didn't point to the Object of Hope, Christ Jesus or define "hope" in any biblical categories.  No cross, atonement, repentance, faith, etc. in the appeal.

2.  I appreciated the references to other women suffering the pain of barrenness (2 Kings 4; Gen. 16; Luke 1) and the couple of references to Paul, but I would have appreciated closer attention to 1 Sam. 1 and it's meaning in context and in redemptive history.  I gathered some helpful pastoral themes from the sermon, but I don't think I came away better understanding the actual text.

Thanks for encouraging us to hope. 

Mark reclines in his chair, which given that his proportions are roughly similar to my own, must be made of reinforced titanium... or he is secretly bringing in new but identical chairs each Sunday night.  He has been pretending to listen thoughtfully as I spoke... slighly furrowed brow, nibbling on one corner of the morning's service bulletin the way people with glasses sometimes put the tip of one arm of their glasses into their mouths.  "Thank you, Thabiti," he says in a tone just shy of rushed, clearly signaling that it's now someone else's turn.