Hannah
Notes
Transcript
Great Women of the Bible
Hannah
1 Samuel 1:9-18
Good morning and welcome to worship! Welcome to those of us gathering online as well. I thank God for the technological advancements that have allowed us to gather and worship, even when we can’t make it in person. Whatever the reason that you aren’t able to be here in the building, I am thankful that we are worshipping together.
We will still have online worship next week, but the service will be abbreviated. I am so proud of you all and the opportunity to serve our Community with the 4th Annual Turkey Take Out. Next week we will have a short time of worship, a brief message about the first named female Apostle of Jesus after the resurrection and then we will go get in line to deliver the meals to the community! I also want to thank Becky for all the work she has done to make this happen. Coordinating, gathering supplies, making sure we have the Turkeys to have a Turkey Take-Out instead of a Ham Hand-out was a big task in and of itself. Then getting the team all on the same page moving in the same direction to make this happen is a huge effort as well. I know you don’t serve for public recognition, but you do deserve a public thank you!
OK, enough of that… We are here to talk about another great woman of the Bible. This week we are going to talk about the mother of Samuel, the Samuel that anointed Saul and then David to be King! His story is a great story – I remember the story of him being in bed and hearing the voice of God but thinking it was Eli the Priest that he was living with… so He got up and ran to Eli and said, “Did you call me?” Eli, waking up says – “No, go back to bed…” then, on the 3rd time Eli realizes that Samuel must be hearing from God. That was a great Sunday School story, reminding us that God speaks to boys and girls just like he speaks to men and women.
What I didn’t’ get in Sunday School, was the story of his mom – where he got his faith to be the leader that he became. So, let’s talk about Hannah.
We’ve already heard from Hannah as we shared her prayer of praise together a few moments ago, but now we are going to hear a little more of the story. Turn with me in your Bible’s to 1 Samuel 1. We are going to be reading just a few verses of this passage.
1 Samuel 1:9-18
Once after a sacrificial meal at Shiloh, Hannah got up and went to pray. Eli the priest was sitting at his customary place beside the entrance of the Tabernacle. Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the LORD. And she made this vow: “O LORD of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the LORD, his hair will never be cut.”
As she was praying to the LORD, Eli watched her. Seeing her lips moving but hearing no sound, he thought she had been drinking. “Must you come here drunk?” he demanded. “Throw away your wine!”
“Oh no, sir!” she replied. “I haven’t been drinking wine or anything stronger. But I am very discouraged, and I was pouring out my heart to the LORD. Don’t think I am a wicked woman! For I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow.”
“In that case,” Eli said, “go in peace! May the God of Israel grant the request you have asked of him.”
“Oh, thank you, sir!” she exclaimed. Then she went back and began to eat again, and she was no longer sad.
[PRAYER]
When I was in High School I worked as a cook at Dairy Queen in my home town. Our regional manager was one of those that had found all the self-help books and thought that if he read enough Zig Ziggler and Stephen R. Covey books he could be president of the company someday. He had enough other issues that I don’t think reading some self-help books were going to advance his career, but he did pour some of that knowledge into his lowly cooks and employees.
It was because of him that I found Stephen Covey’s book, the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. I’m not going to give you a sermon on all 7 habits, but I want to lift one to you that is relevant to the books of Samuel. It is the second habit of highly effective people, that is “To begin with the end in mind.” Now why, you may ask, is that relevant to the Books of Samuel?
Well, I’m glad you asked. The book of Samuel begins during a time when the people of Israel can best be described as a loose federation of families and clans with no centralized leadership. The closest thing they have to a leader at the time is the Priest family at the Tabernacle. Eli is the priest and his sons are Hophni and Phinehas. It seems Eli was a good man, but not a man who would hold his sons accountable for their mistreatment of the worshipers nor their mishandling of their ministry. The people of Israel were threatened from the outside by the superior military forces of the Philistines and from the inside by the corruption of the sons of Eli.
But, By the time of the end of the books of Samuel, the People of Israel are at peace and are being led by King David, a man after God’s own heart.
It seems that the author of the Books of Samuel would have started with the corruption of Phinehas and Hophni and what was about to happen to them, but that doesn’t happen. Oh, we get there quickly and the authors do follow the progression from deceit to decency. But not in the beginning.
Instead of that, in the midst of the corruption and geopolitical turmoil, we get a picture of a family who sought to follow God.
Regardless of what was going on in the world around them, their relationship with God was a priority. The first verses are a picture of what God would want of God’s people. When things are good, they search after God, when things are not so good, they search after God.
Rather than start with how bad things were and work toward how good things can become, the author begins with the end in mind. The author paints a picture of what is there to be received… a life of following God and being blessed by God.
Let me ask you this… where is your focus? Do you automatically focus on what is wrong? Does your mind go directly to the negative? Here’s what happens when we do that.
What is wrong, what is negative, what needs to be fixed automatically clouds every other aspect of your life. When someone asks, “How are you feeling today?” it suddenly becomes – “Why are you asking me that? Do I look like I don’t feel good? I stayed out too late last night, are you judging me because I didn’t come home on time?” and on and on and on.
OR
A coworker asks you, “Hey, let’s grab coffee?” becomes “What did I do wrong now? What are they wanting to talk about this time?” and the anxiety builds and builds.
I call this “Stinkin’ Thinkin’” The more you think the worst things get! It’s a spiral down the proverbial rabbit hole.
And you know, maybe there is something to talk about. Maybe they are concerned about how late you stayed out… or whatever. But here’s the thing. If we always focus on the negative around us, if we are always using stinkin’ thinkin’, then every aspect of our life is clouded by that negativity.
If, on the other hand, your focus is on the good that can be – that mindset clouds every aspect of your life with the positive. If your goal is to have a good relationship with your spouse, your children, your coworker, your boss… whoever… if we begin with the end in mind -the final goal in mind - then we will be working toward that goal.
OK, enough of the self help stuff, right?
Back to this Godly family of Elkanah and Hannah. I’m going to ignore Peninnah, because that’s what you do with bully’s a brats, right? We don’t give them the time of day. If you want do know more about her, you can read the rest of the chapter, but I want us to focus on Hannah because she was instrumental in the blessing of not only her husband and her family, but actually, she is instrumental in the blessing of Israel and ultimately you and I.
How is that? Hannah comes to the Tabernacle – the mobile house of God until the time of Solomon and the building of the Temple in Jerusalem. She and her family came every year to worship and sacrifice before the Lord. This year was like every other except one thing. This time, when she went in distress to the Tabernacle to pray, Eli was there and he questioned her. And in questioning her, he saw her heart and let her know that God had heard her prayer.
Do you ever feel like that? You have poured your heart out to God. You have laid your need before the Altar. You have made your request known to the Lord… and yet, you still want some acknowledgement. You just need someone to say, “God has heard you… Your prayer hasn’t fallen on deaf ears… Your prayers did make it past the ceiling?”
I want you to know… God has heard your prayer. God has heard your cry for help. God has heard you plea for healing. God does hear the cry of the needy.
Just as he heard Hannah that day.
So, here is Hannah… this woman who not only comes to the Lord and cries out in her time of pain, she is willing to follow through. She has wanted a child her entire life, but has been barren. Then, after this prayer, God gave her the desire of her heart. She had a son.
Finally, after all these years God has granted her wish, God has answered her prayer. What does she do? Exactly what she said she would do. She dedicated the child to God. Once he was old enough, probably around 6 or 7, she took him to the Tabernacle and put him in the hands of Eli to be raised in the ministry.
At first I thought, “Wow, that must have been hard to give her son up like that.” Then, I had to realize, our children already belong to God. Hannah knew that it was because of God’s grace and mercy that she had a son at all. It wasn’t like she was giving him up and would never see him again. She did return to him. She would bring him clothes and she would visit him at the Tabernacle during their annual visit as well as other times through the year.
And, if the story ended there, it would be a good story. Hannah’s trust in the Lord, Hannah’s faith, Hannah’s integrity are all great lessons for us to learn as followers of God… BUT… that’s not the end of the story. Nope, God had great things for Samuel. Samuel would become a great leader and a prophet for the people. Samuel would become a judge, a kind of ruler of the people until the time came for King Saul to take the throne.
Samuel was the one who identified Saul as the first king.
Samuel was the one who went to Saul and let him know his time was coming to an end.
Samuel was the one who anointed David to be king, even while Saul was on the throne.
So, why was Samuel such a strong judge and prophet for God? Why was it that Samuel was able to hear from God and anoint Saul and then David?
Why was it that Samuel had the power to speak truth to these kings?
I think it was because of the prayers of a faithful mother.
Never underestimate the power of prayer.
Hannah’s faith became Samuel’s faith.
Hannah’s heart for justice had a lasting impact on Samuel.
Hannah’s love of God, her faith, her integrity… changed the trajectory of Samuel’s life.
That is what a Godly mother can do for a child. But I want to take that a little farther. You don’t have to be a mother to have a lasting impact for God as you pour into those around you.
Your faith can change the lives of others around you.
I think back to yes, my parents… but also to the youth ministers… the children’s volunteers… the neighbors… the teachers… my friends… I think of how my life is different because they cared enough to pour into me.
Your love of God can impact others.
Your heart for following Christ as we feed the hungry, clothe the naked, give drink to the thirsty… changes peoples lives!
So, my question is – who are you impacting for God?
Whose life is being made better because of your love of God?