Monday, May 2, 2016

The Heart of a Childless Mom...

There was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephrathite. He had two wives. The name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other, Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. Now this man used to go up year by year from his city to worship and to sacrifice to the LORD of hosts at Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the LORD. On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters. But to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the LORD had closed her womb. And her rival used to provoke her grievously to irritate her, because the LORD had closed her womb. So it went on year by year. As often as she went up to the house of the LORD, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. And Elkanah, her husband, said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?” (1 Samuel 1:1-8 ESV)
Hannah had it bad. She longed to be a mother. Her "rival" rubbed it in her face, and her husband wrongly took her desire as "what's wrong with me?!?" She did the right thing: she devoted it to fasting and prayer, seeking for what she believed God had called her to be: a mother. What devotion; what faith. Waiting for what you cannot see, cannot hold, cannot hear cry. Will God hear her cry? What do you think? Will He hear yours?

No comments:

Post a Comment