Made for This MomentSample

MADE FOR THIS MOMENT: HANNAH

Trust And Obey

WARM-UP

Making a vow, she pleaded, “Lord of Armies, if you will take notice of your servant’s affliction, remember and not forget me, and give your servant a son, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and his hair will never be cut.”--I Samuel 1:11

ON THE PITCH

Waiting is hard, especially when it is something you really want. Sometimes waiting can cause us to feel lonely or abandoned. Hannah felt like this. She was unable to have children, and she had to deal with her rival, Peninnah, who had multiple children. Verses 6-7 say, “Her rival would taunt her severely just to provoke her, because the Lord had kept Hannah from conceiving. Year after year, when she went up to the Lord’s house, her rival taunted her in this way.”

Did you catch that? It wasn’t days or weeks or months. It was years, repeated in a long, drawn-out cycle of disappointment that felt as if it would never end. Hannah’s response was to turn to God. She pleaded with God and told Him of the deep sorrow she felt. She told Him that if He would give her a son, she would give him back to God as a servant in His temple.

God granted her request after many years of waiting. Hannah had a son and named him Samuel. When he was still a young boy, Hannah followed up on her promise to give him back to God by having him live in the temple to serve the Lord by assisting Eli, the priest. Samuel grew up to become one of Israel’s greatest prophets, all because Hannah trusted God, waited on Him for His answer, and responded to His gift with obedience.

What are you waiting for? What are you believing God for? If God grants your request, how will it bring honor to him?

EXTRA TIME

1 Samuel:1-3

PRAYER

Lord, help me in the midst of waiting to rely on You for comfort and strength. Give me the wisdom to know how to deal with the struggles and impatience of waiting and to understand what I can do while I wait for You. Amen