Hannah

So have been reading 1 Samuel for an upcoming series at church. I have always really liked 1 & 2 Samuel since my began reading the Bible (in fact when I really started to read the Bible in 10th grade those were what got me started). And it makes sense... the Samuel books are stories... who doesn't like a good story?

So in the first chapter of 1 Samuel you run across a woman named Hannah. She is married to Elkanah and can't have any children. She really wants to have kids but never can conceive (And to top it off is getting harassed by Elkanah's other wife who can have children).

So Hannah prayed that God would give her a son and she made God a promise:

"11 And she made a vow, saying, "O LORD Almighty, if you will only 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, and no razor will ever be used on his head."

And you know what God showed up (as He seems to do often). And Hannah conceived and had Samuel.

And Hannah followed through on what she had promised. She gave Samuel to Eli to raise.

There is more to the story... Hannah goes on to have more kids... Samuel goes on to lead a nation.

What catches me was the fact that Hannah followed through on what she said, even in a situation that would have been terribly difficult. We often read the passage and can just read over how hard it must have been. Can you imagine waiting and waiting to have a baby (getting made fun of everyday because you had no kids) and then when a baby finally came, you raised him for the first year or so (getting more attached to him) and then you just gave him up to someone else.

I don't know if I could do that very easily (in fact I couldn't do it easily if at all). After just having a new baby I am more amazed at Hannah's commitment to God. That is intense commitment. That is true commitment... and trust.

I know I have prayed about things I have needed before and have received those things. A lot of times I think I forget to even thank God for what I have received. It is just really easy to forget what God gives you and it is hard to remember that God give you everything you need Matt 6 . Once a prayer is answered I often forget about how thankful I should be (and I don't even have to give God give anything but praise... let alone my first born).

It is easy to dismiss what God does in your life. We are so practical here in America. Most things can be explained away very easily. It is so easy to discount what God has done in a lot of situations. I think that is why we don't see "miracles" as often around here... we are too practical and logical. Everything has an explanation... and if it doesn't we will search for one. We so often missed how many prayers God answers for us (even if they look a lot different than what we expect). We just miss God's work in our lives when we don't give thanks and recognize the little stuff. Hannah could have said, "Well, thank you God for this boy. I figured one day I might get pregnant so maybe it was more of biological then spiritual... but God, You will understand if I keep him, right? He is my first.... maybe the next one I will give up." But she didn't say that. She saw the miracle of what God had given her. And God rewarded her with more children because of her commitment to Him. (And because she of her commitment she gave birth to a leader of the nation... I bet she didn't see that coming).

I guess my final rambling leads me to wonder how committed am I really to God? Would I give him the things I cherish the most? Am I that committed? And what does God give me everyday that I forget to thank Him for?

For me the answer to those questions make me uncomfortable, for I would have a hard time giving up my family for God (although I would like to think I would). And I know for a fact that I often miss what God does in my life.