Faith Fueled By Prayer
1 Samuel 1:1 - 2:10
Introduction
Corrie Ten Boom asked: "Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?” As we face the struggles of everyday life, we must keep our faith strong - and the way we keep our faith strong is to keep it fueled by prayer.
Our text centers on a godly woman of prayer and faith. In the opening pages of 1 Samuel we read of a godly woman with a broken heart.
1 Samuel 1:1-2 There was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephrathite. 2 He had two wives. The name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other, Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
In just a few sentences we see the roots of a dramatic struggle. Elkanah has 2 wives. One has children, the other not. It’s not hard to imagine the emotions and difficulties. Peninnah was cruel to Hannah.This type of tension is seen repeatedly in the Bible between Sarah and Hagar, Rachel and Leah. The setting is a journey to Shiloh, a place of worship at the Tabernacle - and the feast that took place there. Elkanah would give out the portions to his wives. He gave Hannah a double portion because he loved her. Elkanah said, “Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?” (1 Samuel 1:8) Hannah gets up from the table and in distress this woman of faith turns to the source of her strength: prayer. Her intense prayer was silent but thundering.
Out of the 37 verses about Hannah in the Bible, 23 describe her at prayer. Hannah took a hurt only God could heal and turned it into a prayer only God could hear.
Among the truths we learn from Hannah is that prayer fuels our faith! When our faith tank is near empty, prayer fills it yet again and keeps it going.
1. PRAYER FUELS OUR PERSEVERANCE
“Year After Year” (1:3) they would go to Shiloh. How long did Peninnah taunt her? In her struggle, Hannah turned to the Lord, not away. How do saints of God keep on going year after year when it is difficult or a struggle? Prayer is the fuel. Hannah prayed throughout the seasons of her life. In her bitterness (1 Samuel 1:10, 11)
1 Samuel 1:15 "I am a woman who is deeply troubled.”
Hannah did not grow bitter in her prayer life, but grew deeper.
Many grow discouraged and give up on God, on church, on the Christian life, on the truth of the Bible. Remember that God knows our struggle and has sufficient resources to meet our need.
Philippians 4:19 "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”
The Bible consistently tells us to pray and pray. MT 7:7 "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”
Prayer Fuels our Perseverance…
2. PRAYER FUELS OUR PEACE (1:17-18)
Hannah brought her burden to God and made a pledge. Her pledge indicates that she was a woman of God who had at heart the Kingdom of God. When Eli the priest talked to her about her prayer, he said, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him.” (17). The next verse said that she was no longer sad.
She brought her burden to the Lord, and she went away without it.
Prayer lifts our spirits and eases our hearts - even in times of severe distress. Why? Our Father is listening and responding. Our Brother Jesus is interceding for us. Our Holy Spirit is capturing the words we cannot say. There is nothing about God absent when we pray.
1 Peter 5:7 "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”
3. PRAYER FUELS OUR PRAISE (1:20, 26-27)
Hannah was able to have a child because of God’s blessing. (1:26,27) Later we learn she had more children! We know that God does not always answer YES. We believe that if God had answered NO, Hannah would still have served Him. As she had vowed, when the child Samuel was weaned she took him to Eli the priest to raise him up in the Lord. Chapter two is an expression of Praise and Faith in God who was involved in her life all along.
(1 Samuel 2:1,2)
People of prayer see God working in ways never noticed before - and it brings us to praise Him. We lift up his name in circumstances good and bad, because He is over all.
Faith Fuels our Purpose. Hannah gave us Samuel.
One of the most important figures in OT history.
A Prophet, and He was Israel's last great judge.
With God's help, slowed the nation's decay.
He restored the moral fiber of the nation.
He was the one who anointed Kings Saul and David.
Hannah was a part of God’s larger plan, and so are we
Conclusion
1. Hannah teaches us that faith is fueled by prayer.
Prayer fuels our Perseverance, Peace, Praise, Purpose.
2. Hannah’s Faithful Prayer inspires us, but not only us.
She is also an example for someone who had an unusual pregnancy - Mary the Mother of Jesus.
Her song in Luke 1:46-55 bears a strong resemblance to Hannah’s song of praise. Both songs…
-Celebrate a wondrous birth, enabled by God’sgrace
-Look to the coming of an Anointed One
-See the power of God as transforming power in behalf of the powerless. -Birch
3. Has your Faith been running low? "Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?” The answer is to keep it strong by prayer.
4. Jude 20 But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
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Resources
Birch, Bruce C. The First and Second Books of Samuel in The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Volume II. Abingdon.
Evans, Mary J. The Message of Samuel in The Bible Speaks Today Series. IVP
Zee, Leonard Vanderbilts
https://cep.calvinseminary.edu/sermon-starters/proper-28b/
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Unused Quotes
“Hannah is not just a woman; she is a barren woman in the line of Sarah and Rachel and Elizabeth and, then, the ultimate woman who gave birth miraculously, the Virgin Mary. Each of those women gave birth to sons who would play world changing roles in the drama of salvation.” - Leonard Vanderbilts Zee
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How do we handle hopelessness? Can we rest in the tension without assuming (like Eli), Brushing off (like Elkanah) or holding ourselves above (like Peninah)
Simple dismissing someone else’s suffering without getting to know them or try to “fix” them is not helpful. Simply telling the addict to stop or the depressed or grief stricken person to be happy is not helpful. What would it mean to enter into prayer for and with that person without a preconceived result?
How often do we let what other people think influence our prayer? Grace at home but not when we are out? INstead of being a witness to thankfulness and belief we fear what others may think
From
https://www.pulpitfiction.com/narrative-notes/3-6
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We come before God with our petitions and intercessions. We plead with God to remember us and then there is only silence. We wonder if God has forgotten about us or has ignored our needs. After the situation has been resolved, we look back and realize that we had not been forgotten. Instead God was moving in ways that we could not see nor understand.
https://asanefaith.com/hannahs-prayer/
Kevin Ruffcorn
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Throughout this family drama, God is the determining power. it is God who has “closed her womb” (vv 5-6); it is God to whom Hanah prays and makes her vow (vv 10-11); it is God whom Eli invokes to grant Hannah’s petition (v. 17); it is God who ‘remembers’ Hannah and grants her request (vs 19); and it is God to whom the child, Samuel, is given in service (vv 27-28). God works providentially in the events of this story.
- Birch
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“Polygamy was not particularly common in Israel but it was not unusual for a wealthy person to take a second wife, particularly if the first wife was childless.” Evans
