How many times have you poured out your heart before God in desperation for an answer to a prayer? Maybe you've needed direction for your life or you've needed wisdom to make a life changing decision? Maybe you find yourself in a state of depression over circumstances that never seem to change? Or maybe your seeking to find that place in Him where intimacy calls? Beloved, what ever you are going through right now or whatever trial, circumstance or situation you are in today, it's out of these times of despair, hopelessness and depression we can touch the heart of the father.
A key we need to remember when we pray is to first ask ourselves; what is the motive of my heart. Hannah approached God with an open heart, a heart that was pure yet a heart that was broken and desperate. It tells us in verse 15 that she said to Eli the priest that she was a woman oppressed in spirit.
The word "oppressed" means: One who has or is being brow beaten, to be broken in a negative way, demoralized and exploited.
Isn't that exactly what Peninnah was doing to Hannah? And isn't that what the enemy tries to do to us through people? Sometimes it comes through the people we love most and then sometimes through perfect strangers, because the enemy will use whom ever and who every he can.
Hannah goes on the tell Eli in verse 15; "I have poured out my soul before the Lord"
Sometimes this is exactly what we need to do and that is to pour out to God from that broken place. To pour out our hurt, our despair, our failure, our disappointment, our depression, our hopelessness and our brokenness. Allow Him to cleans us and purge us of all that is not of Him, because if we don't, it will act like leaven that permeates and will poison our heart, mind, soul, spirit and physical body's. Hannah could have continued to hold onto her hurt and despair and continue to wallow in self pity, but she didn't. She made a leap of faith that day and put her destiny and future completely into the hands of God.
Is you're faith at the level that you can trust God enough to be completely open and vulnerable before Him? Do you trust Him and are you assured that He will work things out for your good in every situation that you have, will or are facing today? No matter how long it takes, no matter how many years it's been, don't give up. Your answer, your healing, your deliverance and your change will be right on time. Sometimes, we ourselves delay things because we try and solve it in the flesh and that, that we have been promised falls short of God's perfect plan and timing. Sometimes we get ahead of God and the vision and ministry we've been pregnant with is born immature and lacks the strength and maturity that it needs. Beloved, wait on the Lord, trust Him, put your faith into action and let Him bring destiny and purpose to you in His timing.
In verse 17 Eli the priest tells Hannah to: Go in peace and may the God of Israel grant your petition that you have asked of Him.
The word "peace" in this scripture is the Hebrew word "Shalom" which means: Health, prosperity, rest, welfare and all is well.
Something happened to Hannah that day. Eli which was the High Priest and was speaking as a representative of God, spoke comfort, faith and assurance to her. In a sense this was a promise and a prophecy to Hannah. I believe that the Holy Spirit ministered to her at a very deep level that day and caused her faith to rise even higher.
Because in verse 18 Hannah says to Eli: Let your maidservant find favor in your sight. So the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.
The Holy Spirit had not been poured out yet in those days. We read about a few occasions when the Holy Spirit came upon people at particular times, but because of Jesus each one of us can personally know the Holy Spirit and experience Him in our lives.
In Romans 8:26 it says: In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words can not express and He who searched our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance the God's will.
Verse 20 goes on to tell us: Hannah became pregnant and in due time bore a son and named him Samuel (heard of God), because, she said, I have asked him of the Lord.
Let's look at the words "in due time" and see what God is saying to us. If we look up the word individually.
The word "in" here means: Something or somebody is within or inside something and indicates a place or a state.
And the word "due" means: Expected to arrive, ready for something to prosper and appropriate or something due.
Our last word is "time" and means: An appointed moment or limited period chosen for an action, process or conditions to exists so the event can take place.
And Hannah conceived "in due time" because it was her appointed moment that God had chosen for her. It was her time to prosper and appropriate God's blessings. She became pregnant with the seed of life and gave birth to a son in the natural. And this is what God wants to do for us in the spiritual. He wants us to become pregnant in the womb of our spirits so our prayers can be birthed to life. Some of us are caring seeds that have laid dormant for many years and represent promises from God, prophecy's not fulfilled, visions and words that been spoken over us that are waiting to be birthed. God wants to speak life into them and cause them to grow and mature so the birthing process can take place at the right time and season of your life.
God turned Hannah's hopelessness into joy....her curse into a blessing....her longing into reality. Little did she know or even comprehend what God hand planned for her and the son that God was going to give her. Because out of all the hurt, despair, rejection and barrenness, God birthed Samuel that means: Asked of God.
He became a great leader, judge, prophet and priest in the history of Israel. He even established schools of the Prophets for guiding Israel and was chosen by God to anoint Saul which was the first king over Israel.
Only our God can turn a tragedy into triumph and barrenness into fruitfulness. This is what He can and what He will do in your life if you will but wait for your "in due time".
Blessings,
Elma Garlock
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