Sunday Service May 10, 2026 A Godly Mother

When we open to first Samuel, we don't begin with a king. We don't begin with a prophet or a priest or a warrior. We begin with a broken woman, a woman in misery. But you will see she becomes a model of a godly wife and mother. You know, few stories in scripture capture the heart like the story of Hannah. Hannah was a woman who knew the pain of being barren and childless. And this is in a culture where they measured a woman's worth by the children they bore. Hannah was in misery. She's not living up to a culture's ideal. She's not fulfilling her highest duty to have children. [00:38:39] (47 seconds)  #HannahsStory

Normally, in a bargain, there's a specific order. Okay? In this case, it would have been prayer, pregnancy, and then peace. K? You know, when you make a deal, normally, you ask for what you want, you get what you want, and then you're happy. Isn't that right? Prayer, pregnancy, peace. But that's not what happened here. The order we see here is prayer, then peace. And later on, pregnancy and burying a child. So you see, as a godly woman of faith, she was already at peace before she got pregnant, before she bore a son. [00:59:05] (48 seconds)  #PrayerThenPeace

God uses this type of pattern for salvation. God crushes the arrogant, the strong. He humbles those who think they don't need god. And in contrast, he helps those who are weak and broken, who call out to him. Even Jesus didn't come as a conquering king. He came as a humble servant to die on a cross. God uses difficulty, trouble, suffering, weakness, the excluded, the unwanted, the marginal, and even the barren. If Hannah didn't go through this barrenness, the suffering, this rejection, she would have never known this freedom. And you, my friends, and myself, we are no different. [01:11:59] (53 seconds)  #GodUsesWeakness

The pattern to salvation is that God uses weakness, difficulty, suffering. Even. Jesus came not to sit on a throne, but to go to a cross. He came not for the well, but for the sick. He didn't come as a strong conqueror to accept only the strong and the accomplished. Jesus came as a sacrificial lamb for those who would believe in him and be saved by grace. Not by your strength, not by your might, not by your merit or accomplish accomplishments or your accolades of the world, your career, your wealth, but by his love for you, by his mercy and his grace upon you. [01:16:33] (48 seconds)  #SavedByGrace

You know, Mother's Day reminds us of something we often forget. Some of the most important kingdom work happens in places that no one sees. It happens in kitchens early in the morning, late night prayers whispered over sleeping children, and long nights of tears and worry, and in countless small acts of faithfulness that never make the headlines. Today, we glorify and thank God for giving us a precious gift of godly mothers and grandmothers and spiritual mothers. Not because their work is loud or always seen, but because their faithfulness to God and for their love that is steadfast. They're shaping precious young lives and blessing many of us in the church. [00:30:39] (51 seconds)  #UnsungMoms

So you see, having a son but making him a Nazarite is not a bargain. She doesn't really get anything out of it. And if I could maybe paraphrase what Hannah was doing, she would say something like this. You know, Lord, all my life I wanted a child, But that was for me. But now I want a child for you. Up until this moment, if I had a child, it would have been for me so I could fit in, so I could shut up Panina, stop her irritating me, so I could have security, so I can be loved. I probably would have smothered that child and depended on him and not on you. [01:03:40] (46 seconds)  #ChildForGod

In Hebrew, when you stand up like that, when you rise, it means you're taking action. So think of it in today's language. It's kinda like saying, I've had enough. I'm putting my foot down. I'm gonna do something about this. Remember, when the family was eating and drinking, Hannah was weeping. She was crying, and she did not eat. But then she stands up. And she says, as if to say, enough. I'm not gonna heed and in his voice and follow the world, and I'm not gonna base my life on the affection of Elkanah. What does she do? Back in verse nine, it says, she rose. She's taking control, and she prays this passionate prayer. [00:52:54] (49 seconds)  #RiseAndPray

She prayed without any knowledge. She was at peace without any knowledge of whether God would fulfill her answer to her prayers. You know, that's very similar to the pattern you see in when you read the book of Psalms. You know, the Psalmist will say, oh, Lord, how long how long must I endure the suffering? When will you answer? And they'll cry out to God. And within they'll remember God's character and goodness. And they'll say, they'll praise God for his majesty and power and deliverance even though God did not deliver them yet. See, that's faith. We rely on who God is. See, Hannah wasn't listening to the other voices because God was her portion. [01:00:00] (43 seconds)  #FaithBeforeAnswers