Go to the King F.R.O.G
Notes
Transcript
Hey yall, from now until Christmas we are going to journey through different parts of the bible OT and NT and so we would love for you to join us in our reading plan. We will post it each week on our social media and have it on our guides because though some passages may be hard to read we want to help you create space to spend time with God, and allow Him to speak to you.
Hey yall, from now until Christmas we are going to journey through different parts of the bible OT and NT and so we would love for you to join us in our reading plan. We will post it each week on our social media and have it on our guides because though some passages may be hard to read we want to help you create space to spend time with God, and allow Him to speak to you.
This was a time in history were people did what was right in their own eyes and they rejected God as their King because they wanted a physical leader like the other nations, but God was still faithful to provide leaders for them. We will see when the leaders focused on living for God, the people flourished, but when they focused on themselves, they failed. In all of this the Lord used leaders successes and failures to ultimately point people back to Him as the perfect, faithful, selfless King that does not fail or give up on His people.
This was a time in history were people did what was right in their own eyes and they rejected God as their King because they wanted a physical leader like the other nations, but God was still faithful to provide leaders for them. We will see when the leaders focused on living for God, the people flourished, but when they focused on themselves, they failed. In all of this the Lord used leaders successes and failures to ultimately point people back to Him as the perfect, faithful, selfless King that does not fail or give up on His people.
After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. And she vowed a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”
As she continued praying before the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, and her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman. And Eli said to her, “How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you.” But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.” Then Eli answered, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him.” And she said, “Let your servant find favor in your eyes.” Then the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.
To help you understand what is going on. This man named Elkanah had two wives and Hannah here in our passage is one of them.
I’ll just this if you are confused about why does this person have multiply wives, You will read a lot of that early on in scripture but God is not for it. In Fact, #1 God created marriage between one male and one female. #2 Every relationship in scripture where a husband has multiple wives there is always division and things are not healthy. It does not honor God as we will see in this passage. Again this was a time where people just did what they thought was right to them rather than looking to God, the bible you will see, especially in the OT was full of people and situations that broken and messy, but I am thankful that even while we were broken and sinners, the bible says Christ came for us. He didn’t have too, but He chose to so that we could be saved from sin and healed from brokenness.
Hannah here one of the wives of Elkanah is depressed, anxious, angry. SO many emotions here because for years she has been taunted by Elkanah’s other wife because she was barren. Again, always dysfunctional when there are multiple wives in the picture.
But years of being put down and hated led her to this state of depression, anger, and being anxious. She had every right to become a victim and be mad at God, but even in the midst of the things going on in her life and the things happening to her Hannah prays.
Prayer in its simplest and purest form is fellowship with God and depending on Him.
Prayer in its simplest and purest form is fellowship with God and depending on Him.
Hannah's relationship with God was strong and it was evident by her prayer life. Hannah was able to endure seasons of depression, anxiety, and anger why?
What can we learn from Hannah’s prayer life.
There is so much we can learn from her prayer life, like being humble always positions us to hear from the Lord. She called her self time and time again throughout this passage a servant. She was in a humble position to hear from God.
She was honest with God, even her struggles.
She worshiped, even if things didn't happen for her immediately. She worshiped while she waited.
Hannah keeps praying even after she had recieved her Son and completed her vow. It shows she did not pray just to get something from God and then was done with him, she loved God and had a relationship with Him. She believed God cared for her and would provide for her when she was barren and when she was fruitful.
She praised God in her prayers.
Praying is not something we do in order to twist God's arm and get Him to do what we want. Prayer is something we do to fellowship with God(EVEN WHEN WE ARE A MESS), align our hearts with His, grow our relationship with Him, depend on Him to provide, and listen and obey to what He speaks.
Salvation only comes from God. God can do what no one can.
BUT what I want you to grab ahold of, because I feel like this sums up a lot of list, is
Don’t let anything keep you from going to the King.
Don’t let anything keep you from going to the King.
When we pour out our life to God, He fills us with His peace.
You see Hannah didn’t let anything keep her from God, because she believed and trusted that God was the only one who could help, rescue, and ultimately save her. She laid it all out before God.
Depression and anxiety are very real, but they do not have to keep you from the peace of God.
Depression and anxiety are very real, but they do not have to keep you from the peace of God.
You know I am thankful for doctors and medicine that help people with depression and anxiety, but my encouragement to is are you first depending on God in prayer to help you with these things, or are you forgetting about God and just trusting medicine to do the work.I watched a video recently on the subject of medication and if it is a sin. The video was good because it said it could be a sin and it could not be. The whole point was if you are trusting in God with whatever you may be dealing with or going through first and above all then your heart is right and medication would not be sinful, but if you are not giving to God or trusting in God with the things you have going on then your heart is probably not looking to him.
Again I want to say I am thankful for modern medicine and all that doctors do to research and help people they deal with, but run to the Lord with it all. Pour out your heart to God. What we see when she pours out her heart to God, she is filled with peace.
Philippians 4:4–6 (ESV)
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
Just like Hannah, don’t let anything keep you from going to God in prayer.
Go to the Lord:
Go to the Lord:
- Even when you're feeling depressed and anxious.
- Even if you don't feel like it.
- Even when people are mean to you.
- Even when things seem impossible.
Even when things doing seem like they are getting better.
- Even when people misjudge your intentions.
- Even when "people of God" don't act like people of God.
- Even if you are in a crappy situation.
Even if things are going well.
Don’t stop going to King Jesus.
Don’t stop going to the Lord, Hannah had every right to stop in fact.
Hannah and her family traveled to Shiloh every year and multiple times a hear but she did not have too. Exodus 23:17
Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord God.
Men were obligated to go by the law, but women didn’t yet she still chose to go to the King.
There are and will be a million reasons you or someone could come with to not go to the Lord, but if you don’t go to God you will never experience first of the peace of God, but also what He can do.
You see God can do what no one else can.
So here is my prayer and hopefully some application for all of you no matter where you are at in your faith. Whether you would say you are following God or not.
Don’t give up on God, and do not let anything keep you from going to Him. What does that look like practically?
Pray honest prayers.
Give God all the emotions you are feeling, but be willing to listen and learn from Him through His word.
Things are not perfect in our world, and people are not perfect, but God is. Don’t let the failures of others distort who God is.
Find a time to go to him everyday.
Get some friends together and pray for one another.
For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”