“Then Hannah prayed: “My heart rejoices in the Lord! The Lord has made me strong. Now I have an answer for my enemies; I rejoice because you rescued me. No one is holy like the Lord! There is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.” 1 Samuel 2:1-2 NLT
Then Hannah prayed. And the floodgates, bound up by angst and anticipation, burst out of her soul. Like a dam that had reached its maximum capacity. She either opens her soul to God or her heart would burst from holding in years of thoughts and emotions.
Who knew this girl had it in her? This is how it goes with quiet folk. It seems there is not much going on. They are quiet, keeping mostly to themselves and speak very little. The thought is, “they just don’t have anything to say.” Oh, but Hannah had words! Stored up words.
Moments of time and frustrations that had passed, it was all packed in tightly in her heart. Samuel tells us how hard it was for his mother, “Year after year it was the same—Peninnah would taunt Hannah as they went to the Tabernacle. Each time, Hannah would be reduced to tears and would not even eat. “Why are you crying, Hannah?” Elkanah would ask. “Why aren’t you eating? Why be downhearted just because you have no children? You have me—isn’t that better than having ten sons?” Her husband, asks her why? why? why? Aren’t I enough? Oh, poor Elkanah, he had no idea of what was going on. And, most of the time, I don’t know what’s really going on in my wife’s heart either (nor her knowing mine).
It’s recorded that Hannah speaks out twice, and briefly, early in the story. She pours out her soul before God in the tabernacle, the place God would visit from time to time. She says, “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the Lord, his hair will never be cut.” Did you read that? It starts like a warrior’s prayer! The second time Hannah speaks out, it’s both respectful and humble – even though Eli did not deserve respect, she gave it anyways.
You need to know a couple of oddities about Eli at this time. One, Samuel tells us that Eli was sitting in his normal spot at the entrance to the tabernacle. Strangely, there are no chairs on the list of items that God wanted in the tabernacle. Why was Eli sitting? Two, Eli doesn’t recognize an earnest prayer before God and mistakes Hannah’s cries as drunkenness! Had there not been anyone emotionally expressing themselves before God in that place? Or was Eli so uncomfortable with such emotions that he would rather believe it was because of booze? Three, by the way, Eli died sitting in a chair! (1 Samuel 4:18, “Eli fell backward from his seat beside the gate. He broke his neck and died, for he was old and overweight.) Back to Hannah.
“Oh no, sir!” she replied. “I haven’t been drinking wine or anything stronger. But I am very discouraged, and I was pouring out my heart to the Lord. Don’t think I am a wicked woman! For I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow.””
God grants her favor and gives her a son. Several years later, after Samuel is born and weaned, Hannah keeps her promise and brings little Samuel to the tabernacle and allows Eli to adopt him as a guardian. After Elkanah and Hannah dedicate their son to God and present sacrifices as a thanksgiving offering, Hannah let’s this magnificent prayer loose. This intense, raw, prayer comes gushing out. This prayer is the echo, a second stanza to the first prayer she began with when she asked God for favor to give her a son.
“My heart,” she says, “rejoices! the Lord has made me STRONG.” Watch out enemies. Shut your mouth, sister Peninnah. How dare you mock me in my suffering and how dare you doubt that God would grant me my heart’s desire! Hannah was no longer quiet. Hannah was no longer pitied. Hannah was now a WARRIOR MOM!
Now more than ever we need warrior moms. Moms and grand-moms that are sick of being mocked about unanswered prayers and unfulfilled godly desires! Moms that cry out to God “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me… my son back, my daughter back, my grandchildren back. That they would come home, returning to you Oh Lord of Hosts!”
Warrior moms pray and God hears and works miracles on their behalf. Moms, don’t let Peninnahs’, Elkanahs’ or Elis’ mock you, distract you or stop you from getting your prayers up and out to God. Be strong. Pray strong.
Prayer
Dad,
I may not be a mom, but I can recognize a warrior mom who boldly asks, seeks, knocks and relentlessly, patiently comes before you in faith! I don’t know if you have favorite prayers from favorite people, but I somehow believe these warrior mom prayers get the attention of heaven and priority in your grace. All that I ask is that you ANSWER these prayers. On behalf of the tears shed for a generation of lost sons and daughters – please ANSWER these prayers.