A Heart Like Hannah

A couple of months ago I read "Twelve Extraordinary Women" by John MacArthur. It really made me think about who I am as a woman in God's eyes and who I want to be before Him. One of the women that really impacted me and whom I desire to be like is Hannah.

Hannah's backstory:
She was married to Elkanah. Elkanah had two wives, Hannah and Peninnah. He married Hannah first and loved her more than Peninnah, yet Hannah could not have children so he married Peninnah. It was evident that he loved Hanah more. He gave her double portions when it came time to sacrifice and feast. Peninnah would constantly remind Hannah that she could not have children and that she wasn't worth anything. She treated her awful as if she was insignificant. Elkanah tried to comfort her but Hannah wanted to bare children. She wanted to use everything she had to raise a son in the name of the Lord.

This is what makes her stick out to me, when the family went up to the house of the Lord Hannah went and prayed to the Lord. She wept bitterly and begged God for a son. She laid everything at His feet. But as I read about her and pick up on things from her life I noticed that not only did she lay everything at the feet of the Lord but she left it there. She walked away and had a burden no more. She trusted that God would be faithful to answer her prayer. Eli, the priest, mis-took her for a drunk. As she prayed her mouth moved but she prayed in her heart. When she told him what she was doing he said to her, "Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him." Although Eli had no idea what he was telling her, God was still faithful. She had the faith to lay it before the throne of God and leave it there. She walked away at peace with the situation.

God has been showing me what it means to take things to the foot of the cross. He is also teaching me what it means to leave it there. One of the hardest things to do is to leave things with God. Which is silly, because God is constantly showing me that He is the ultimate caretaker. I keep praying that God will give me a heart like Hannah. Even when Peninnah was being rude and crude and had an attitude (yes it rhymes on purpose) Hannah did not react in the same way. She acted gracefully. She was still respectful and laid it all at the feet of Jesus. It really makes me think about child-like faith. She trusted that God would take care of her, all her needs and wants and desires. She made an oath (or promise) to God. She would commit her son to the Lord if she was allowed to have a son. God heard her prayer and answered it. He not only answered it, but He continued to answer it. Hannah had other sons and daughters. She had unwaivering faith.

As a woman, I read stories like Hannah's and want to be a woman like her. She truly displays Christ-likeness, even though Christ was not yet made manifest in the flesh. She was a woman of faith, humility, prayer, peace, patience, worship, sacrifice, devotion, and she trusted God completely. Often I pray about becoming Christ-like and exhibiting the characteristics of Hannah. God poured Himself into her and made her like Himself in so many ways. That is my desire, to be made like Him.

Hannah sacrificially gave her first born son to the Lord. She bore him, nurtered him, and placed him in the hands of the Lord. She visited him and loved him. God blessed her for her devotion to Him. She was incredibly feminine and displayed a heart for God. Our purpose being here is to know God and make Him known. Hannah did this, she got to know God and she made Him known to her son. Often as I pray I ask God to give me a heart like Hannah.