As many of you know, I have like the most thick 'milk bottle' glasses EVER!
Hahaha Yes and albeit most of the time I wear contact lenses but they are just
as bad! The point I am making is that I RELY on my lenses to be able to see.
But what am I trying to see? Well to see the world around me, to even get dressed in
the morning I have to RELY on my lenses or I will just bump into everything
and probably get myself into trouble.
Why is it then that I am unable to RELY fully on God?!
I am being crazily honest here but it is important to admit our faults!
Until we have admitted we have an issue we are unable to actually do anything about them.
After repenting of this I know I can come to God knowing fully that he is my ONLY
help! My source! My Guide! My All!
SO WHAT?!!!!
Yeah yeah I can hear you all saying how is this important to me?
Or
What can I do now?
Or
HELP!
One particular person that I am learning to think of when things get tough is
an amazing women called Hannah. She is the parts of me I struggle to get the hang of and yet she does it beautifully!
To set the scene.......
READ 1 SAMUEL 1 (FIND IT BELOW)
Basically Hannah is awesome!
Hannah is so so desperate for babies (anyone notice any similarities here ? :-P)
she continually asks God and all she gets is a no ! :=(
But many of us at this point would give up.... NOT Hannah!
She is DETERMINED AND PATIENT! -She does not and will not give up
She is STRONG! - She finds the strength to pray for years & years
She is a women of FAITH! - She pushes on and on
She has HOPE! - She hopes in prayer - "You do not have for you do not ask" - James 4
God loves us to pray expectantly! Wrestle passionately with God!
We may come broken, emotional, weak and yet we are stronger when we do...... It is ok you know to come to God crying and desperate.....
Psalm 56 "put my tears into your bottle"
Bring everything to him, take everything to him, he is sympathetic!
Some of us may feel like we are completely unable to come to God because
we just don't know him well enough! This is no excuse.... infact it is an answer to your own prayers........ If you don't know someone well enough in the flesh then we spend time with them until we get to know them better!
We must do this with God!
We are all culprits of being 'too busy doing and not being'
Pray with FAITH and EXPECTATION because HE is GOOD!!!!!!!!
You know what?! She is given a baby! After years and years of wrestling patiently with God she is blessed for her continued faith and assurance that God is faithful.
1 Samuel 1 (taken from the Amplified Bible)
1THERE WAS a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim, of the hill country of Ephraim, named Elkanah son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2He had two wives, one named Hannah and the other named Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.
3This man went from his city year by year to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh, where Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were the Lord's priests.
4When the day came that Elkanah sacrificed, he would give to Peninnah his wife and all her sons and daughters portions [of the sacrificial meat].
5But to Hannah he gave a double portion, for he loved Hannah, but the Lord had given her no children.
6[This embarrassed and grieved Hannah] and her rival provoked her greatly to vex her, because the Lord had left her childless.
7So it was year after year; whenever Hannah went up to the Lord's house, Peninnah provoked her, so she wept and did not eat.
8Then Elkanah her husband said to her, Hannah, why do you cry? And why do you not eat? And why are you grieving? Am I not more to you than ten sons?
9So Hannah rose after they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his seat beside a post of the temple (tent) of the Lord.
10And [Hannah] was in distress of soul, praying to the Lord and weeping bitterly.
11She vowed, saying, O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your handmaid and [earnestly] remember, and not forget Your handmaid but will give me a son, I will give him to the Lord all his life; no razor shall touch his head.
12And as she continued praying before the Lord, Eli noticed her mouth.
13Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved but her voice was not heard. So Eli thought she was drunk.
14Eli said to her, How long will you be intoxicated? Put wine away from you.
15But Hannah answered, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I was pouring out my soul before the Lord.A)" style="line-height: 0.5em; ">(A)
16Regard not your handmaid as a wicked woman; for out of my great complaint and bitter provocation I have been speaking.
17Then Eli said, Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him.
18Hannah said, Let your handmaid find grace in your sight. So [she] went her way and ate, her countenance no longer sad.
19The family rose early the next morning, worshiped before the Lord, and returned to their home in Ramah. Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her.
20Hannah became pregnant and in due time bore a son and named him Samuel [heard of God], Because, she said, I have asked him of the Lord.
