1 Samuel 1 [The Message]

We get weak in our faith when the times are tough. In the story of Hannah, a barren woman who was desperate for a child, we have an example of how effective the human heart can be with God when it is denied.

Firstly, her desire for a child eclipsed any other priority in her life. She was essentially miserable unless God would respond to her prayer. It was her whole focus. She was misunderstood by Eli the priest. He thought she was drunk when she prayed. Still, she persisted in her quest for God’s provision.

Second, she made some costly commitments to God through her travail. She said, “If You’ll quit neglecting me and go into action for me by giving me a son, I’ll give him completely, unreservedly to You. I’ll set him apart for a life of holy discipline.” [1 Sam. 1:10,11]

God responded by giving her one of scripture’s most devout persons, the great prophet Samuel. Her desperation, although painful for a season, is an example of how to really do business with God.