Word of Encouragement (08/15/2023)
Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, "May the LORD give you children by this woman for the petition she asked of the LORD." So then they would return to their home. 21 Indeed the LORD visited Hannah, and she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. And the boy Samuel grew in the presence of the LORD. (1 Sam. 2:20-21)
We talked about how amazing it is that God should listen to Eli’s prayer, given his flaws and failures. Today, let us reflect on how generously God answered his prayer.
We are told that, after Eli’s prayer and their return home, the LORD visited Hannah and enabled her to conceive—not just one child but three sons and two daughters! What a drastic change in Hannah’s life! For many years, she had lived with inconsolable sorrow! Every night she flooded her bed with tears and drenched her couch with her weeping (Ps. 6:6). She had felt unworthy as a woman because she was barren. So, she was thankful beyond measure when the LORD granted her a son. So grateful was she that she did not hesitate to fulfill her vow to dedicate this miracle child to the LORD’s service. Since the LORD gave her this child, she was willing to give him back to the LORD.
This did not go unnoticed by God. He was gracious enough to give Hannah a son when she had nothing to give Him. If she was able to dedicate her son to the LORD, it was only because He granted a son to her first. Of course, it could not have been easy for her to dedicate her only child to the LORD’s service! But when she did, God multiplied His blessing to her fivefold—for dedicating her one son, God gave her three sons and two daughters!
Here is another powerful example of God’s generosity toward His people. When He demands something from us, it is not because He needs it. “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are mine. Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats? Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me” (Ps. 50:12-15). When we honor Him as our greatest Treasure, He opens His treasure troves and pours out His blessings on us. How foolish it is for us to hold on to the stuff of this world as if it were more important than God to us!
When the Lord visits, everything changes. Drowning in her sorrow, Hannah could never have imagined that she would be surrounded by so many children of hers. But when the Lord visits, He can do good to us far beyond our imagination. Have you experienced the visitation of the Lord? If you are a believer, it has happened to you already. The Lord has indeed visited His people in His first coming to grant us a gift far beyond a thousand sons and daughters and all the treasures of this world—our eternal life in heaven in Jesus Christ. And the Lord has visited us in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit to all those who believe in Jesus Christ. And the Lord will visit us yet once more on that glorious day when He shall bring us to heaven in glory! Let us forsake our idols and cherish Him as our chief Treasure!