Last Sunday we saw how God answered Hannah’s honest and desperate prayer, by giving her Samuel. In providing this son for Hannah and Elkanah, God was also doing something that would bring blessing far beyond their home. He was providing a leader for Israel, and setting the stage for the establishment of a monarchy and the coming of the Messiah.
This Sunday we will look at Hannah’s song of response in 1 Samuel 2:1-10. This song is a prayer of rejoicing in who God is, what He has done, and what He will do in the future. We learn a lot from Hannah’s song about how to respond to blessings. Hannah’s thoughts turn not upon herself, nor upon the blessing itself, but upon God. In receiving the gift of a son, she rejoices in the glorious Giver! Her entire song is focused upon Him:
- She proclaims His holiness and sovereignty (vv. 2 & 6-8).
- She rejoices in how He reverses the plight of the poor and oppressed (vv. 4-5)
- She trusts in His future reign and provision for His people (vv. 9-10)
One of the greatest tests of our faith is how we respond to blessing. Many of us instinctively turn to the Lord in prayer when we face suffering. But it is harder to fix our gaze upon Him in the middle of blessing. The gifts themselves capture our attention, and we begin to rejoice more in their temporal glory than in the eternal glory of the Giver. Because of this, we can easily turn God’s gifts into opportunities for idolatry. Then, when those gifts are taken from us, we grow resentful because we have lost the true treasure of our hearts.
Hannah’s song reminds us that every good gift should lead us to treasure God. Good gifts are always pointers to an all-glorious and beautiful Giver!