1 Samuel 1:9-11, 19-20; 2:1-10
If you’ve sensed a recurring title this fall, then you’ve been paying attention. If not, this is the third sermon this fall titled “In the Middle.” We find ourselves in the middle once more. Hannah has grown up and lived in a religious household that has followed God. She is married, but she has had no children. Her husband has children by his other wife, and this is a sore spot in family relations.
As a woman of faith, Hannah goes to God with her issue. She prays significantly and visibly. She gets rebuked for being drunk (you’ve heard that before), and then she rebukes Eli. She gets a blessing out of her rebuke. Hannah gets her prayer answered. And then she takes the next step. Hannah responds to God’s answer in the birth of her child.
Hannah’s response is then echoed later in Scripture in the songs of Zechariah and Mary. Her response is for more than her. She expands on God’s response to her, and in so doing speaks about who God is to the world. How do we respond to the mighty deeds of God in a way that expands them beyond us? Are we willing to do that out loud?
