Hard Hearted Hannah

Sometimes I get billed as "Hard Hearted Hannah" because I'm not moved by classics like "An Affair to Remember" or "Gone With the Wind" and I never understood the hype surrounding "Titanic." I don't even particularly like its theme song. What insolence! Now you understand why some people wonder if I even have a heart. Tonight on a whim I decided to look up the origin of HHH. Since Hannah is a biblical name, my first thought was that the moniker could reference a forgotten Bible story. But no! It's almost as shameful - it's an old song I never knew! I like to think I have a pretty good knowledge of older songs, but this one does not even sound familiar. In the song I compared my roughness with Hannah: "She's got a heart like a stone" and "Leather is tough, but Hannah's heart is tougher." Okay, maybe we're pretty close so far... "I saw her at the seashore with a great big can, There was Hannah pouring water on a drownding man!"

Wait!! She's a really is a hard hearted gal!!! I can hear Bonnie Rait pleading "Have a heart!"

What if I confess that "Brian's Song" makes me weep, "The Other Side of the Mountain" makes me blubber, and I had to burrow my head because "The Red Balloon" was so tragic and touching without a word being spoken during the entire film. Kodak commercials are a given. Can I step down from my honorary title? Poor Hannah, she was sentenced because her name rhymed with Savannah.

My prayer for the congregation?

Dear God, We are thankful that your heart is always open to receive your people. You encourage heart-to-heart talks and are willing to listen to our sorrows, our concerns, and our joys. You welcome our confessions and love us still. Let us share a similar open and accepting heart-to-heart connection with our family and neighbors, strangers and newcomers, enemies and even ourselves. Let us see that within every person is a child of God who you love without limit, as you love us. Let us exercise our heart muscle to maintain its suppleness and compliance avoiding rigidity and hardening. Let them know we are Christians by our love, by your love. Amen.