You probably know that King Saul, the first king of Israel, was not a very good king. When I think about his story, I am really thankful that Israel was not stuck with Saul as their only leader. Fortunately God sent Samuel the prophet to be his representative and a voice of reason to the people and their king. It's remarkable to think about why Samuel even existed. In fact, he was born simply because someone prayed! Samuel's birth came about because of the prayer of a woman named Hannah.

Hannah's story is recorded in 1 Samuel 1 and I highly recommend that you take some time to read it. The short version is that she desperately wanted a child and so she cried out to the Lord. The story mentions in verse five that it was the Lord who had closed her womb. This is a great reminder for us that every child is a gift and work of God! He is the Author of Life who numbers our days. He alone sets the day of our birth and he alone sets the day of our death. As sinful people we often forget that and try to take matters into our own hands. Hannah understood God's role and so she turned to him in prayer.

When asked what she was doing she said, "I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord." Her prayer (found in verse 11) is very simple. She prayed, "O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head."

Hannah prayed with passion, but her prayer was not a selfish one. She prayed in a way that glorified God. She was determined to dedicate her child to the Lord. And that's exactly what she did. Samuel grew up listening to the Lord and eventually became his mouthpiece. I'm so thankful that she took the time to pray.

When You Pray

Take time to thank God for the gift of your children.
Praise God for being the Author of Life.
Pray that your children would follow after God and be used by him.