Daily D – 1 Samuel 1:15-16
1 Samuel 1:15, 16 “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 1:15-16 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/1sa.1.15-16.NIV
“Don’t think I am a wicked woman! For I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow.”
1 Samuel 1:16 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/1sa.1.16.NLT
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Have you ever entered into a state of prayer and did not care who was watching or what they thought? Hannah was at such a point in her life. Listen carefully to her explanation when the old priest Eli accused her of drunkenness.
“I was pouring out my soul to the Lord.”
Some grief and some desires cause such deep passion we cannot help but turn to God in longing prayer.
“I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.”
Our moods shape the words we use when we pray. Hannah felt great anguish and grief. A prayer along the lines of, “Now I lay me down to sleep,” would have been completely insufficient for the moment. A prayer written by someone else and read aloud could not contain the emotion of Hannah’s heart.
Hannah was resolved to talk to God alone without a priest as an intermediary, without the presence and companionship of her husband, without any concern regarding what anyone considered fit and proper. Take a look at verse 9:
Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his chair by the doorpost of the Lord’s house.
Hannah stood up.
We most often think of people who pray from a place of deep anguish as kneeling or prostrating themselves. Hannah stood up. Some burdens can only be borne while standing. Her trust in God was strong. Her words were silent. Her passion was deep.
In contrast to Eli’s sons who dishonored the priesthood, Hannah honored God by going directly to him with the sorrows of her heart. God spoke to Eli about his sons’ behavior by saying in part, “Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained,” (2:30).
Hannah honored God. God honored Hannah. He answered her prayer with a joyful, “Yes!” His answer blessed not only Hannah, but all of Israel.
Psalm 99:6 says,
Samuel was among those who called on his name;
they called on the Lord and he answered them.
The psalmist could have added Hannah to his short list of powerfully prayerful forebears. He did include Hannah’s little boy Samuel whose name means, Heard by God. (See verse 20.)
When she delivered him to the old priest Eli to serve God, she said,
So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.”
And he worshiped the Lord there.
(verses 27, 28)
- What posture does your prayer require today?
- What attitude of heart and mind are you in as you approach our Father in heaven?
- What burdens do you bear as you enter his presence?
- How will what you seek from him honor him and benefit others?
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I will pray according to the need of the moment with posture fitting the attitude of my humbled heart and mind.
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Our Father, teach us to pray not only for our own personal desires but for answers that will overflow to the benefit of others. Thank you for hearing and answering our prayers. Amen.
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