Maximum Impact

My Text reading: 1 Sam 1:1-2, 6-7, 19-20

Elkanah had two wives: You know there’s going to be trouble right there.

The name of The one was: Hannah (Grace-favor)

And the name of the other was: Peninnah: (Jewel, ruby, precious, valuable)

Hannah (Grace, Favor, was unfruitful, unproductive, barren, her womb was dead).

When Elkanah gave out portions he gave to Peninnah and all her sons and daughters portions.

But to Hannah he gave a worthy portion: Double portion

Elkanah had come to the conclusion that it didn’t matter if Hannah ever bore him any children because Peninnah was very fruitful.

So Elkanah was adjusted to the situation and so was Hannah, Hannah was satisfied with the circumstances because she knew she was the favored wife, she had Elkanah’s attention, and affection.

Everything was fine: they had an arrangement; they had it all figured out (anybody ever been there?) You thought you had everything figured out, you had all your ducks in a row, it wasn’t perfect but you knew you could make it serve your purposes.

Then out of nowhere (Wham, Something happened that messed everything up, all your plans and schemes, and working, and tweaking, and playing just ain’t working anymore.)

Peninnah starts to provoke Hannah over her barrenness, her words are harsh and hateful filled with resentment and jealousy and her words are like arrows that stick in Hannah’s heart.

At first they just seem to bounce off and have no effect, but Peninnah does not let up, and eventually it becomes clear the arrows have hit their mark.

Now we see that Hannah is now disturbed over the fact that she is barren and has not borne any children to Elkanah.

But Elkanah tries to pull her back, and get her to settle back down and just enjoy what they have.

Am I not better to thee than 10 sons? He asked.

But Hannah has been awakened (she has become uncomfortable and dissatisfied and discontent with things as they are.

And now discontent and discomfort and frustration change into a desire and a craving and expectation and a need for more.

Hannah begins to realize: there’s more than this, I was created for more than this.

Now she looks past Elkanah, all the love, all the favor, all the material blessings cannot satisfy her, they cannot open her womb, they cannot meet her need.

I came to tell you tonight: there is a cry from the spirit of every true believer for a life that is higher than money or popularity or worldly success, higher than religion.

Inside the womb of every true child of God is a cry for the miraculous, for signs and wonders and miracles, a cry from their spiritual womb for the manifestation of the power of God, to be fruitful, to birth souls into the kingdom.

I believe tonight somebody is looking past Elkanah, (he represents the love the blessings the favor,) and they’re going to cry out to God and contend with God for the glory and for the power.

In other words: somebody (maybe not everybody, but somebody) wants more out of life than to just go along and get along.

(Somebody is wanting a life of maximum impact)

I wish I had at least 30 people in here that would stand up on your feet and let the devil know that you’re a force to be reckoned with, and let the devil know that you are contender, that you want more than just to be blessed, you want to make a maximum impact.

The whole mission and operation of the Holy Spirit and the assignment over the fivefold ministry is to bring every believer to the place of maximum impact.

Eph 4:11-13 and he gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelist; and some pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints; for the work of the ministry till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the son of God unto a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

In other words to bring every believer to the place of Maximum Impact

Maximum (means greatest in quantity or highest in degree attainable, the most the best)

Impact (means affect, influence) (the force of impression of one thing on another)

This is the aim and goal of the Holy Spirit, the church and all of her ministry’s:

To bring every child of God to the place where not only do they make it to heaven but where they are living their lives at Maximum Impact.

Living the Christian life at the highest degree attainable, experiencing and manifesting the best and the highest and the greatest and affecting and influencing others with the force of maximum life.