Have you ever wanted something so badly that it hurt?  There’s a woman in the Bible that seemed to express that pain so greatly.  Her name was Hannah.   Year after year, Hannah and her husband would go up to Shiloh to worship the Lord and offer a sacrifice at the tabernacle.  She was barren and all she wanted was for a child of her own.  One year she was so overcome with grief and anguish as she prayed at the entrance of the tabernacle.  She told the Lord, if you answer my prayer and give me a son, I will give him back to you as soon as he is weaned, and he will be Lord’s for his entire lifetime.  The Lord granted her desire, and soon after she gave birth to a son, Samuel.  Hannah kept her promise to the Lord.  As soon as her son was weaned, she brought him back to the tabernacle and he served the Lord as a priest, a prophet, and a judge for Israel for the remainder of his life.  

Whenever I was young and I read the story of Hannah and Samuel, I always thought it was so sad that although her prayer was answered in that she was able to give birth to a son, she didn’t get the joy of playing with her child, or raising him to be a young man.

But it was only later on did I realize that God actually blessed Hannah and gave her more children.  I Samuel 2:21 says “And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord”

I love how God does that.  Hannah honored her word, and God turned around and blessed her beyond what she probably ever imagined.  When she was barren and simply asked God for one child that she could give back to Him, He gave her 5 more that she could keep and enjoy as her own.

Hannah’s deepest desire was for a son…But God needed a priest, a prophet, and a judge to serve Israel.*

I want to encourage you today to give that deep desire to the Lord and let Him take it and make it much bigger and better than you ever imagined.  I don’t understand God’s ways most of the time, but I can see His love and His faithfulness through each difficult situation.  My prayer for you is that you too would see His love and faithfulness and trust that He will use your dreams to fulfill His purpose in your life. ~ Vijoy

*Concept derived from the DreamCovery conference by Shuronda Scott, September 2013