Mothers' Day 2007

Andrew G. Pittman
Sunday Morning (Mothers’ Day)
May 13, 2007

The Story of Hannah: A Faithful Mother.
1 Samuel 1: 1 – 28.

I. Introduction


Every year at Mothers’ Day I am reminded of the mother who had raised three rambunctious teenagers. The children had a reputation throughout their small town and were constantly in some kind of trouble. One day, in a conversation with a friend, the mother was asked, “If you could start over, knowing what you know now, would you have children again?” The mother responded, “Yes. But not the same ones.”




(Read 1 Samuel 1: 1 – 28.)

Hannah had a problem. She was unable to bear children. This is not an unusual problem. It is a problem that many women have faced both past and present. It is a problem that carries with it a certain social stigma, embarrassment, or even worse an overwhelming sense of shame and guilt.

In the Ancient Near Eastern world, Hannah’s problem carried even larger social consequences. In that world and at that time, women had no inherent value of their own. No, a woman’s only value was tied to her closest, living male relative. Women were only identified by their men. In fact, there was really no such thing as a woman. There were only daughters, wives, mothers and widows. And that was the progression of their lives.

A woman started her life as a daughter, who was totally dependent on her father for all her needs until she married and became a wife. A wife was totally dependent on her husband until her husband died—or worse, divorced her. A widow was totally dependent on her oldest, living son. Unless, of course, she had no son…Then she was simply discarded—thrown away—as if she were a non-person, someone without either identity or means for providing for her own needs.

So, Hannah had a problem. This was completely a woman’s problem. It was not her husband’s problem. The Law provided a way out for the man. Elkanah was Hannah’s husband. He was a good Jewish man…extremely religious and a careful observer of the religious Law and the Jewish customs. Elkanah also wanted a son to carry on his family name and to provide for him in his old age. But, Elkanah had a problem that could be solved. Hannah’s problem could not be solved.

Israel was one of very few countries in the ANE where it just wasn’t very common for a man to have multiple wives. However, it was allowed in certain cases. One of those cases is what we see with Elkanah and Hannah. If a man married a woman and later discovered that she could not have children, the Law allowed that man to take a second wife so that his family name could live on. And for that very reason, Elkanah took Peninnah to be his second wife.

Hannah was his first wife…the woman he desired…the wife whom he loved. Peninnah was his second wife…the woman he needed in order to have a son…the mother of his children.

Every time Elkanah traveled to the religious festivals at Shiloh, he took both wives: the woman he loved and the mother of his children. Over time, this developed into a competition between the two women. It was obvious to Hannah where she ranked in social standing—she could not provide her husband with a son. It was obvious to Peninnah where she ranked in Elkanah’s heart—each time they sat down to eat the religious feast, Elkanah gave Hannah the largest, most favored portion of meat. Because Hannah was his first love.

Peninnah began to insult Hannah and ridicule her. This seems ironic to me, because Hannah was the woman Elkanah loved and certainly had more to brag about. Yet, Hannah was doomed to a life of poverty and homelessness as a widow with no one to take care of her needs.

So, Hannah had a problem. There was only one place for Hannah to turn. There is only one Person who can do the impossible. There is only one Person who can bring forth life from death. There is only one Person who can satisfy Hannah’s legitimate desire for a son. So, Hannah went into the Sanctuary at Shiloh to pray earnestly for God to provide her with a son.

Now I have to admit, this is part of the Hannah story that has always bothered me. All my life I have heard this story taught in Sunday School or preached on days like Mothers’ Day as a story of a woman who could not have children but who “made a deal with God” that if God would give her a child she would give that child back to God. Then God honored Hannah’s faith by blessing her with a child who became the first prophet in Israel. And Hannah kept her part of the bargain.

It makes a great story. But it just doesn’t seem to fit with my experience. And it definitely doesn’t fit with my understanding of God. What about the millions of women past and present who have prayed for children yet were never able to conceive?


Shauna and I have great friends in Waco, who are faithful, committed Christians, yet they were married for fourteen years without children. They eventually adopted a precious little girl from Hong Kong and named her Hannah—which, by the way, is the Hebrew word for Grace, a Gift from God…

I also know women who are wonderfully committed Christian women, yet they have chosen to remain single and therefore without children. Lottie Moon was at the same time a single woman and deeply committed Christian minister. We could name dozens, if not hundreds, of Christian women who are single and without children as a result of tragic circumstances such as death or divorce.

Therefore, we make a mistake—even on days like Mothers’ Day—when we say that being a mother is a sign of faithfulness. Or that God ALWAYS blesses faithful women with children. That is simply not the case.

So, why this story about Hannah? What is the Bible trying to teach us by telling this story? I believe that we miss the point every time we look at Hannah’s prayer for a son as an example of faithfulness. The point is not about Hannah’s prayer for a son. The point is that God used this woman to bring forth Samuel…And God used Samuel to anoint the first two kings of the united Kingdom of Israel: Saul and David…And God used David to become the ancestor of Jesus of Nazareth.

When we look at Hannah, we are supposed to see Samuel, David and Jesus. The fact that Hannah could not have children simply underscores God’s role in the birth of Samuel. Hannah is just like Sarah, Rachel, Mary…Women who could not have children until God stepped in and performed a miracle…

When all seemed hopeless…that it was impossible for Hannah ever to have a son…God stepped in and performed a miracle. There are some people who might not recognize God’s hand at work in situations like this. But not Hannah…In verse 27 Hannah said, “I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him.”

Hannah demonstrates two important aspects of being a godly parent—or today, being a godly mother…


II. Children Are a Gift FROM God.
This is an important lesson for many parents today…Parents who find their busy lives interrupted or their plans canceled because of children…Believe it or not, there are some parents who view children as a curse rather than a blessing…

We find a similar theme in Psalm 127… “Sons are a gift from the LORD, children a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in ones youth. Blessed is the one whose quiver is full of them…”

Since each of us was at one point in time a child…We ought to consider ourselves Gifts from God…Our very existence is possible only as a Gift…


III. Children Are a Gift TO God.

Hannah reminds me of Abraham…They both thought it was impossible to have a child by natural means…But God provided each with a son…Both recognized that their child was a gift from God…And both were willing to give their “gift” back to God…Abraham was willing to sacrifice Isaac on the altar…Hannah was willing to give Samuel to Eli the priest as a “living sacrifice”…

There is just one difference…Remember what I said about the Law providing a way out for the man…When Sarah could not have a son, Abraham had a son with another “wife,” Hagar…If Isaac had died on the altar that day, he could always depend on Ishmael to take care of him in his old age…But Hannah had nothing…When she gave Samuel to Eli the priest, she gave away her very SELF…She gave Samuel’s life as well as her own life…There was no one left to care for her in her old age…

Hannah demonstrates an important lesson for all women and men of faith…Hannah demonstrated STEWARDSHIP OF LIFE…





IV. Conclusion

Stewardship of life is a concept that Jesus taught his disciples…Of course Jesus never used those exact words…Instead, he told a parable of a master who had three slaves…When the master went away on business, he entrusted his financial assets to these three slaves…When the master returned, he rewarded the two slaves who had done the most with what had been on loan to them…Then they returned the talents to the master…

Jesus teaches us that we are not held accountable for acquiring more—because it all comes from the master anyway…We are accountable for how we use the things we have been given…

Hannah is an example of One Faithful Mother…But she is also an example of Good Steward of Life…

If we can recognize our children as gifts from God, then we can give them back to God…If we can recognize our very lives as gifts from God, then we can give God our very lives…