The story of Hannah in the Bible always stirs up mixed feelings in me. I feel her raw pain as she cries out to God for a child, having sailed in that boat a few years back. Just like the joy she feels when Eli confirms to her that God has heard and will answer her heart's cry, I too know the peace that comes from a heaven-sent promise.
I wonder how she feels on discovering that she is pregnant; does she keep it to herself fearing that it is just another late period? Does she confide only in those closest and dearest to her, or 'tell it on the mountains'?
Fast forward to 9 months later and there she is with a babe in her arms.
"Samuel, because I asked the Lord for him" is her quiet explanation when friends and family ask how she arrived at that name.
A beautiful name. A befitting name. A reminder of her promise to God.
And she made a vow saying,"O Lord Almighty, if you will look upon your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life..."
(1 Samuel 1:11)
Though we may never know the minute details of Hannah's journey to the temple and back, we do know that this is one woman who knew the power of a promise kept. She not only takes Samuel up to the temple, but she does so with a sacrifice in hand (1 Samuel 1:24). Now that's what God calls a cheerful giver! She could easily have reasoned that Sammy would be at the temple for the rest of his life, and therefore kept him at home for a few more years. After all, according to her promise to God, there was no specific timeline as to when she should take him. But not this mamma! Just as God was quick to answer her cry for a son (she only lay with Elkanah once and she conceived), she was also quick to honor her promise.
I wonder how she feels on discovering that she is pregnant; does she keep it to herself fearing that it is just another late period? Does she confide only in those closest and dearest to her, or 'tell it on the mountains'?
Fast forward to 9 months later and there she is with a babe in her arms.
"Samuel, because I asked the Lord for him" is her quiet explanation when friends and family ask how she arrived at that name.
A beautiful name. A befitting name. A reminder of her promise to God.
And she made a vow saying,"O Lord Almighty, if you will look upon your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life..."
(1 Samuel 1:11)
What Hannah does next baffles me (I can see many other mothers with me on this one). She weans him, and young as he is, takes him to the temple, to dwell there for the rest of his natural life (1 Samuel 1:24-28). I have often read this and wished the writer of Samuel would go into details: Are her shoulders stooped as she carries little Sammy up to the temple? Are her eyes swollen with the grief of giving up her only child? Doe she have to physically drag herself away from him as he cries out to her receding figure? Is Peninnah waiting for her at the gate to her household, all too ready with snide comments and jeers?
Though we may never know the minute details of Hannah's journey to the temple and back, we do know that this is one woman who knew the power of a promise kept. She not only takes Samuel up to the temple, but she does so with a sacrifice in hand (1 Samuel 1:24). Now that's what God calls a cheerful giver! She could easily have reasoned that Sammy would be at the temple for the rest of his life, and therefore kept him at home for a few more years. After all, according to her promise to God, there was no specific timeline as to when she should take him. But not this mamma! Just as God was quick to answer her cry for a son (she only lay with Elkanah once and she conceived), she was also quick to honor her promise.
"... those Who Honor Me, I Will Honor"
(1 Samuel 2:30)
Indeed, God did honor Hannah, for other than Samuel, she did birth 5 other children: 3 sons and 2 daughters (1 Samuel 2:21).Wow, talk about being given abundantly more than you could ever ask or imagine! When Hannah was making her promise to God, I don't think she knew what blessings her keeping that promise would bring. Her son Samuel was not only a godly prophet and judge, but she also had a full, bursting-at-the-seams-with-kids house.
The lesson for me in this is that my child is a gift from God. My work as her mum is not to hold on to her, but to wrap her up in prayers and place her in God's gentle arms, to do His bidding now and forever more.
