SCRIPTURE: 1 Samuel 1
OBSERVATION/APPLICATION:
‘I tell you the truth,’ Jesus said to them, ‘no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will fail to receive many times as much in this age and, in the age to come, eternal life.’ [Luke 18:29-30] Reading this chapter, I am struck by several things: Hannah’s barrenness because the Lord closed her womb [1 Samuel 1:6], the cruelty of Peninnah [1 Samuel 1:7], the insensitivity of Elkanah [1 Samuel 1:8], the agony of Hannah [1 Samuel 1:10-11], the pastoral blunder of Eli [1 Samuel 1:12-14], and the fulfilled vow of Hannah [1 Samuel 1:11,28]. I am especially focused on her giving over the child she prayed for to the Lord.
As we will see in ch.2, the motivation for her giving Samuel to the Lord was a deep sense of gratitude for His mercy to her. My sense as I hear her prayer in ch.1, and also her praise in ch.2, is that she has moved from being overwhelmed with despair, to being overwhelmed with joy and gratitude. She cannot help but give her precious son back to the Lord. She offers him to a radical life of service to God, as a Nazirite [no razor will ever be used on his head, 1 Samuel 1:11, Numbers 6:3-7]. This was not an easy life, not one that a parent would easily dedicate their much-loved child to. She dedicates him to the King, and to the kingdom, to the purpose and mission of God!
Jesus talks about people leaving family for the kingdom of God. He is talking about the huge sacrifice that follows deep love for God, because of His deep love and mercy. Overwhelmed by His goodness, people make huge sacrifices: a widow sacrifices her only penny [Luke 21:1-4], a sinful woman sacrifices expensive perfume [Luke 7:37-39], fishermen leave family and jobs to follow Jesus [Mark 1:16-20], a tax collector leaves his lucrative job and table of money to follow Jesus [Luke 5:27-28]. And the list goes on.
And Jesus assures us that this sacrifice actually results in greater blessing. For Hannah it meant joy in place of despair; a son whose leadership helped the nation as a whole; and more children [1 Samuel 2:21]. Yes, there are rewards for a life-devoted to serving the King, and the kingdom. Not worldly riches, but deep riches, of being loved, of inner peace, of a life of purpose, and of seeing God bless and restore us and others in amazing ways. Those who devote themselves to the Lord and sacrifice themselves on the ‘altar’ of the kingdom, come out richer than they ever would by living for themselves.
PRAYER:
Lord, thank You for making me rich in a deep, eternal way. Thank You for the joy of devoting myself and my life and my everything to You.
The following struck me as I read this passage:
There was division in the household, but that division did not cause them to stop worshipping the Lord. If anything, for Hannah, her talks with God increased, sharing her heartbreaks with God.
At all times I need to be in touch with God. Hannah was – in the good times and in the bad times – she poured out her heart to God. She did not compare herself to others and how their families were, but focussed on her life, her grief, her unhappiness. And eventually felt, through Eli, that God had answered her prayers because she ate and was no longer downcast. In God alone do we find our answers of our daily living for Jesus.
Hannah did not travel to the temple for a few years until her son was weaned, but still did teach him the ways of God. When the time came she presented him to the Lord for service. So too, our children are not our own. They are a gift from God and we too need to present them for service to the Lord. That needs to be impressed upon the children. That need to be impressed upon the parents.
Let this be my prayer today and tomorrow and . . . help me this day Lord to live at peace with all mankind in my service to You. The joy of the Lord my God is my strength.
Pray on, pray on, O trusting heart,
Let not thy courage fail;
But take thy Savior at His word,
And know thou shalt prevail.
Refrain
Tho’ the cross is hard to bear,
There is balm in secret prayer;
Go and tell thy sorrows there,
And leave it all with Jesus.
What tho’ thy prayers thro’ many tears
May reach His throne on high;
He knows the anguish of thy heart,
And will not pass thee by.
Refrain
Perhaps in some desponding hour,
When hope has well nigh past,
The light will burst upon thy soul,
And joy be thine at last.
Refrain
Pray on, pray on, O weary not,
Whate’er thy trial be;
But lean thy faith on Him Who said,
“It shall be well with thee.”