Day 14- Faith Like Hannah
Throughout my momma journey with Ryan, I had one lady that spoke truth, love, and faith into my life. She would often tell me that God would use the pain for His purposes. She didn’t know how but she was sure He would. I believed her. She was the kind of person that just lived her faith out loud. She knew God’s Word. She was contagious and inspiring. When I grew up, spiritually, I wanted to be just like her.
At age 3 and 1/2, Our Ryan continued to learn sign and was on his way to walking independently without his walker. And…to our excitement and apprehension, I was pregnant with our second child. I began to pray differently over child number 2. I begged The Lord for strength and courage if our second child was born with health issues. I prayed this baby would be born healthy, but if not…I would choose to trust Him.
In the coming days we will meet two Old Testament women. Both extremely conflicted by their circumstances. Both with strong internal resolve to trust God with the kind of faith that is awe-inspiring. The kind of faith we should all aspire to and pray for.
Today, let’s meet Hannah. Hannah’s story is seen in 1 Samuel Chapters 1 and 2. Please take time today to read her story in full. For our time together, please read Chapter 1 verses 11-12 and 19-27.
Elkanah had two wives; Hannah and Peninnah. Hannah was barren and Peninnah had many children. This greatly distressed Hannah. What made it worse was that Peninnah was a bully. She teased and provoked Hannah relentlessly about her inability to have her own children. You can be sure Peninnah was an EGR (Extra Grace Required) in Hannah’s life.
In verses 11 and 12, Hannah is in the temple praying and begging God to give her a son. She made two promises to The Lord in return.
Write down Hannah’s promises to The Lord:
1.
2.
The Lord heard Hannah’s cry and she became pregnant. When she had weaned Samuel, she gave him back to The Lord.
Now, in my mind, giving our children “back to The Lord,” means dedicating them. Promising to teach them about God and His Word. Nope, not Hannah! She literally gave her son to the priest, Eli, to raise in the temple.
That’s indomitable faith! My word-smith hubby shared this word with me and I love it! ( Indomitable adj.-impossible to subdue or defeat)
Who has been a godly inspiration in your life? Why?
Read Hannah’s Prayer 1 Samuel 2:1-10:
This is a beautiful prayer of praise acknowledging God’s sovereignty and omniscience. Hannah had no idea how her indomitable faith would impact the kingdom of God. Her son, Samuel, was God’s chosen prophet to Israel. He would later anoint David as king…Jesus is from the lineage of David. Impressive!
Here’s the cool blessings, six fold, that came from Hannah’s faith—Eli, the priest, had two sons of his own that were horrible and didn’t want anything to do with God. Bad parenting or willful rebellion, scripture doesn’t really say. Anyway…by Hannah giving Samuel back to The Lord, Eli got the blessing of raising a child who loved and honored Yahweh. Hannah visited Samuel every year at the temple. Eli blessed Hannah and asked God to bless her with more children. He did…she had 5 more.
On our Faith Journey, we have been learning to trust God’s sovereignty and character one-step-at-a-time. We may have no idea this side of eternity how our faith walk influenced others. But, God does. He takes our feeble attempts at faith and makes them awe-inspiring acts that honor his name and impact others in ways we cannot fathom.
We all need to be reminded that our lives matter to our Creator God. He did not forget Hannah and he will not forget us. He sees us…He knows us…He love us…He has BIG plans for us.
Pray and ask The Lord for faith that moves mountains today. Thank someone who has inspired you throughout your faith walk. Now, go be an inspiration to someone else.
I’m praying for you. Like Hannah, God’s got amazing things in store for you. Dream big and be indomitable in your faith walk today.
“Jesus replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matt. 17:20
