A Desire for deliverance
Since last fall, I’ve found myself challenged in a really new and unique way. I’m in an incredibly different stage of life than I’ve ever been in — marriage will do that to you — and with that has brought plenty of places in which I’m convicted of different sin or heart issues.
One of those issues has really stuck with me for awhile and I first encountered it back when I first starting reading 1 Samuel as a part of a Bible study I’ve been in since August. It’s the story of Hannah and the tremendous audacity she had with the Lord.
For those not familiar, Hannah was one of Elkanah’s two wives. Her story was initially a sad one as she was barren, unable to have children, and was subsequently ridiculed by Elkanah’s other wife, Peninnah, for this misfortune. Not great, I know.
But despite her station, in a place of extreme courage, she prayed to the Lord and gave him a simple ask: You give me a son and I’ll give him back to you.
11 And she vowed a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”
1 Samuel 1:11
The immediate words that struck me when I first read this were “if you indeed look on the affliction of your servant.” How sweet is that? Don’t you think the Lord delights in us — recognizing his omnipotence — wanting him to use that power to find us in our time of need? God knows our struggles before we even meet them, but His glory is put on an even bigger stage when his children ask Him to move like only He can.
The second part of this verse that amazed and — just as equally — convicted me was her promise to give her son back to the Lord should He allow her to give birth. If there was ever a display of radical faith, this must be it.
For women in this time, being unable to have children essentially took your life’s purpose away. So for Hannah to 1) have the audacity to ask God to cure her barrenness and then 2) promise to give that child right back to Him in thankfulness represents a faith and devotion to the Lord that I have yet to master.
It’s the ability to make big “asks” of God — and not just that — but to then also be open-handed with those blessings He has given us.
Too often, I look upon my misfortunes and feel helplessness they cause instead of the hopefulness that only the Lord makes possible. We’ve all heard countless times how much easier it is to see God’s provision from the mountaintops than from the valleys, but it’s in our weakness where He shines. Paul understood this in his letters to the Corinthians, and it’s obviously something Hannah believed in, too.
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
As you might know, the child Hannah ultimately bore was Samuel, a prophet who raised up and anointed David as the next King of Israel. Without Samuel, there is no David and without David, there is no line to Christ. All this originated with Hannah asking much of God, not because she would gain a thing — she was prepared to give up the exact thing she was asking for — but because she recognized where her provision came from and deeply desired to make much of His name.
I would encourage you, just as I have myself, to look at your prayers and see 1) if you’re being open-handed about things you’re asking to come to be or have given to you and 2) if you’re coupling those with a request for God to align those desires with what He desires for you.
The more we align ourselves with the heart of God, the more we begin to look like Him.