A Faithfulness That Cost
by Sue Griffiths
Most of us know the story of Hannah, the lady who was so distraught and weeping in the temple that the priest reprimanded her, thinking that she must be drunk. But Hannah was the beloved wife of a man who had two wives. And while the second wife had several children, Hannah remained barren. She would have experienced spreading rumours in the family and among her friends that she must have sinned badly and somehow was on the receiving end of God’s profound disapproval, under a curse. And the longer the situation continued, the more the whispers in the community would have continued.
And this is where we meet her: weeping in the temple, praying to God, in all her shame, her disappointment, her sense of failure.
But God heard Hannah’s cry. He knew her shame. And God answered her prayer. She gave birth to Samuel.
The amazing thing about Hannah is that, having received her heart’s desire, her immediate decision is to keep the promise she had made to God and to give this precious baby to God, for life – as she promised she would! She keeps him until he is weaned (somewhere between three and five years-old probably) and then she deliberately sets off to fulfil her vow. She takes her only, beloved child to the temple, as she had promised God she would.
What a lady this is! How easy it would have been for her to enjoy her little son at home and quietly drop that promise she had made to God that she would return him to the temple!
But she kept her word. What a lady of faith! And of faithfulness! We know how God honoured Hannah and God used Samuel as a godly and mighty man in Israel’s history.
I wonder to myself: what requests have I ever made of God in my longing and desperation, and what I have I done with those gifts God has given me? Did I keep my part of the bargain, or have I just kept it all for me?
I would like to be like Hannah, the Hannah who kept her promise to God –even at huge cost to herself. God honoured that lady. God heard her weeping. Her heat’s desire was precious to God. And Hannah’s story is recorded for us.
Sue Griffiths Sue found deep inner healing through the teaching and ministry at Ellel ministries and is now part of the associate ministry team at Ellel Grange. Previously, Sue was a specialist in English Literature and a vicar’s wife. Her passion is to see others coming into freedom in Christ in their personal lives. Sue’s an outdoors person, loves gardening, walking, and many creative things. She and Richard, her husband, now live in Northumberland and enjoy a great family of 3 grown up kids and some grandkids.
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