Drunk on prayer...

 As we come to the book of 1 Samuel in our reading plan, I have to stop and let it all soak in. 

If you have drifted off in your reading, or perhaps not reading at all, now is a good time to hop on the reading plan with us!

It is getting good. I mean, all of God's Word is good, but, it is about to be take your breath away, cannot put the Bible down kind of good!

Eek!! 

Today we read about Samuel. Oh, Samuel, Samuel, Samuel. 

Hannah prayed for a child desperately. She prayed so fervently that the priest, Eli, thought she was drunk!

Have you ever prayed like that?? Oh, I sure have and it is not a pretty sight. 

As she (Hannah) kept on praying to the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk  and said to her, “How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine.”

 “Not so, my lord,” Hannah replied, “I am a woman who is deeply troubled. I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring out my soul to the Lord.  Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.” 1 Samuel 1:12-16

Does your heart just ache for her, or what? Ahhh. I want to hold her close and tell her that her story is about to change. That God is about to do something so BIG that she will never ever be the same!!

Eli, the priest, follows up with these words...

Eli answered, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.” 1 Samuel 1:12:17

The Lord answered her on-the -knees, swollen eyes, raspy screaming cry for a child prayer. 

He answered, just as Eli said He would. 

Samuel is born to Hannah, and the foreshadowing of  Jesus unravels. 

Samuel ends up being the last Judge of Israel and anoints the first two Kings...Saul and David. King David is in the lineage of Jesus!

As a child, Samuel grows up under the tutelage of Eli. 

God calls to Samuel in the middle of the night, and it takes 3 times for Samuel to realize it is actually God calling Him. 

I get chills every time I read Samuel's words..

"Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." 1 Samuel 3:10

Samuel is a great prophet and God uses him to begin the pathway to the birth of our Savior,  Jesus Christ. 

However, without the prayers of his mother, Hannah....Samuel may have never been born. 

Hannah never gave up. 

Hannah kept praying. 

Hannah pressed on. 

Hannah did not care what others thought of her as she wailed out to God for a child. 

Hannah promised God her child. 

Hannah delivered on that promise. 

God blessed Hannah with more children after Samuel.

But, Samuel is the one that God used to foreshadow the coming of Jesus...

Hannah played a huge role in the life of Samuel. 

I think of my own role as a mother. 

This job of endless duties, constant serving, unnoticed work, and faced pressed to the floor prayers...

Could it be that God uses mothers in mightier ways than we could ever dream or imagine?

Oh, I believe it to be true with all my heart!

Sometimes it seems like we will never ever see fruit from these long days, the hard parenting decisions, these constant begging God for answers and wisdom prayers.

Just yesterday I was in my car praying the same prayer over one of my kids for the billionth time it seems. Lord, it just seems so...monotonous at times, I cried out to Him. 

Then, this morning, I read about Hannah. 

Such HOPE. Such PERSEVERANCE. Such PRAYER. 

Hannah never stopped praying for her hearts desire. 

I want to be like Hannah. 

After reading about Hannah and Samuel, I grabbed some notecards and wrote some scriptures on them and dated them. 

I tucked them underneath my daughter's bed, in between the mattresses. 

These scriptures are the cry of my mother heart over her life. 

I remember doing this when my kids were little. When they were fearful of the dark...

I tucked scriptures of faith underneath their mattresses. I played a little CD of scripture songs softly in their adjoining bathroom. 

God's Word will never return void. God's Word is the Sword of The Spirit, slaying lies of the enemy. I want that tucked underneath their bodies as they lie down to sleep each night. 

Reading about Hannah reminded me of the power that God has given me as my children's mother. Power to pray over them. Power to speak Truth over them. Power to fight on their behalf when the enemy is relentlessly trying to win their hearts. 

It may seem monotonous many days. This praying and reading scripture and praying some more. 

Oh, but one sweet day, we will see the budding of fruit. We will see the full blown harvest if we keep on persisting in our prayers...I believe it to be true because God tells us over and over to keep on praying. 

Pray without ceasing 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Philippians 4:6

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Romans 12:12

And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith. Matthew 21:22

learning from Hannah, 

jill