In the previous post, we discussed the biblical introduction of God as the Lord of Hosts – Yahweh Sabaoth. We discussed Hannah, who, in her desperation for a child, was the first person to refer to the Lord as Yahweh Sabaoth in her prayers for her womb to be fruitful. What we did not examine in the previous post is the “why” behind God’s intervention. To put it frankly, what made Hannah so special? Why would God answer her prayers in such a glorious manner when so many of the things that we ask God for seem to go unanswered? You may be in a position where you’ve been believing God for something for so long that you start to wonder if your requests are falling on deaf ears. Why is it that God blesses some but seems to ignore others?
A large part of the answer is found within us and the actions that we take when we are asking God for our miracles. How we live our lives on a day-to-day basis as it relates to our intimacy with the Father is the overarching principle. Throughout this post, I would like to highlight the position that Hannah took in response to her dilemma as an example of how to posture ourselves for the Lord to answer our prayers.
Hannah was in constant torment by her husband’s other wife Peninnah for having a barren womb. We see that clearly throughout the beginning of 1 Samuel 1. She couldn’t even partake in a meal celebrating the Lord because she was so consumed by her own heartache. She was sad, she was distraught, and she was missing out on the life in front of her because she was so upset. I’m sure that we can all relate to being in such low a place. However, Hannah did not stay in that place. She did not succumb to depression or begin to doubt God or resent Him. What does the Bible say that Hannah did after she had her moment of despair? She got up and turned to the source of her strength. She ate, she got dressed, and she went to the temple (1 Samuel 1:9). This is the point in the text where we hear her refer to God as Yahweh Sabaoth (1 Samuel 1:11), praying so fervently that even the man of God thought that she was drunk. She postured herself to receive her blessing by showing the Lord that she knows who He is – all powerful, almighty, and the source of her answer. She refused to remain so fixated with the problem that she forgot to turn to the One with the solution.
Secondly, just as Hannah recognized where her solution would come from, she recognized that even the deepest desire of her heart served only for the glory of God. She had no problem giving it back to Him before she even got it. She offered her son as a servant of the Lord before she was even promised that she would have one (1 Samuel 1:11).
One thing that we have to understand about our Lord is that more than He wants us to have what we want to have; He needs us to be who we need to be. He cares far more about our development than our satisfaction. We need to have a firm grasp on our purpose and our identity and to do that, we need to have a concrete understanding of who God is. We exist for the glory of God. Until God sees that you understand that principle, He will withhold the thing that you’re asking for because you’ll hoard it for you instead of offering it up to Him. You will begin to idolize the blessing instead of the One who blesses. Hannah demonstrated her understanding of her purpose and consequently the purpose of her unborn child. In this part of her life, she exhibited that one, she recognized God for who He is and two, she recognized her purpose. It was at this point that God blessed her with the desire of her heart without hesitation.
Finally, when Hannah received the promise of what she had been asking for by God through the mouth of Elijah, she believed him. This sounds so simple but when you’ve been so depraved for so long its can be hard to believe God when He tells you it’s time. When God gave her the word that her womb would be blessed with a child, she turned to praise. Her despair was lifted immediately (1 Samuel 1:18). She had no evidence of the blessing, yet she celebrated anyway having full faith in the word of the Lord.
I will add an additional note that after God kept Hannah’s promise to her, she kept her promise to Him as well (1 Samuel 1:24). How many times have we told God, “Lord, if you just get me through this I will…” but how often do we make good on that promise? I would venture to say that most times we are so enamored with the promise itself that we forget to go back and honor the Promise Keeper. Show God that He can trust you to continually bring Him glory and He will faithfully enlarge your territory.
Walking With, Like, and In Christ 
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