Part 1: Hannah

Hook:

Old Betsy (my first car)

When I got my first car, Old Betsy, I prayed hard she wouldn’t die on me in the middle of nowhere. I wasn’t just worried about the car—I was desperate to get somewhere.

Hannah’s desperation was bigger than a car—it was about her heart, her purpose, and her relationship with God.

Subject:

The goal isn’t deliverance it’s desperation.

Need:

Many of us pray for answers, for breakthroughs, for relief—but often our desperation is for the gift, not for God. Hannah’s story teaches us that God desires hearts that long for Him, even before He gives the blessing.

Context:

Hannah was childless in a culture where a woman’s identity was tied to her children. She faced daily ridicule from Peninnah, her rival, yet she responded not in bitterness, but in prayerful desperation.

Text:

HANNAS VOW

1 There was a man from Ramathaim-zophim in the hill country of Ephraim. His name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 He had two wives, the first named Hannah and the second Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah was childless. 3 This man would go up from his town every year to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of Armies at Shiloh, where Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were the Lord’s priests. 4 Whenever Elkanah offered a sacrifice, he always gave portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to each of her sons and daughters. 5 But he gave a double portion to Hannah, for he loved her even though the Lord had kept her from conceiving. 6 Her rival would taunt her severely just to provoke her, because the Lord had kept Hannah from conceiving. 7 Year after year, when she went up to the Lord’s house, her rival taunted her in this way. Hannah would weep and would not eat. 8 “Hannah, why are you crying? ” her husband, Elkanah, would ask. “Why won’t you eat? Why are you troubled? Am I not better to you than ten sons? ” 9 On one occasion, Hannah got up after they ate and drank at Shiloh. The priest Eli was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the Lord’s temple. 10 Deeply hurt, Hannah prayed to the Lord and wept with many tears. 11 Making a vow, she pleaded, “Lord of Armies, if you will take notice of your servant’s affliction, remember and not forget me, and give your servant a son, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and his hair will never be cut.” 12 While she continued praying in the Lord’s presence, Eli watched her mouth. 13 Hannah was praying silently, and though her lips were moving, her voice could not be heard. Eli thought she was drunk 14 and said to her, “How long are you going to be drunk? Get rid of your wine! ” 15 “No, my lord,” Hannah replied. “I am a woman with a broken heart. I haven’t had any wine or beer; I’ve been pouring out my heart before the Lord. 16 Don’t think of me as a wicked woman; I’ve been praying from the depth of my anguish and resentment.” 17 Eli responded, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant the request you’ve made of him.” 18 “May your servant find favor with you,” she replied. Then Hannah went on her way; she ate and no longer looked despondent. 1 Samuel 1:1-18

SAMUEL’S BIRTH AND DEDICATION 19 The next morning Elkanah and Hannah got up early to worship before the Lord. Afterward, they returned home to Ramah. Then Elkanah was intimate with his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. 20 After some time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, because she said, “I requested him from the Lord.” 21 When Elkanah and all his household went up to make the annual sacrifice and his vow offering to the Lord, 22 Hannah did not go and explained to her husband, “After the child is weaned, I’ll take him to appear in the Lord’s presence and to stay there permanently.” 23 Her husband, Elkanah, replied, “Do what you think is best, and stay here until you’ve weaned him. May the Lord confirm your word.” So Hannah stayed there and nursed her son until she weaned him. 24 When she had weaned him, she took him with her to Shiloh, as well as a three-year-old bull, half a bushel of flour, and a clay jar of wine. Though the boy was still young, she took him to the Lord’s house at Shiloh. 25 Then they slaughtered the bull and brought the boy to Eli. 26 “Please, my lord,” she said, “as surely as you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. 27 I prayed for this boy, and since the Lord gave me what I asked him for, 28 I now give the boy to the Lord. For as long as he lives, he is given to the Lord.” Then he worshiped the Lord there.  -- 1 Samuel 1:19-28

Preview: 

Learn to be desperate for who God is not just what He gives. Desperation always cost us something. Desperation lifts our eyes off of us and onto Jesus. Desperation, sometimes, leads to deliverance. 

Points:

1) Learn to be desperate for who God is not just what He gives

vv. 1–11 – Hannah pours out her heart before God.

Desperation is the goal; deliverance is the gift.

Imagine spending hours on your phone for likes, followers, or attention—that’s self-worship. Hannah’s desperation was for God, not for the gift of a child.

Ask yourself: Am I desperate for God—or just for what He can give me?

The enemy wants us desperate for comfort, popularity, or stuff. True desperation points to God.

2) Desperation always cost us something

Vv.11 – Hannah promises the child she doesn’t yet have. True worship requires letting go.

True desperation costs something—sacrifice is giving God what we value most.

Like giving away your phone for a week to focus on God—what is hardest for you to surrender?

The enemy resists surrender. He wants us to cling to comfort, possessions, or pride. Sacrifice demonstrates allegiance to God, not self.

Identify what God is asking you to release. Offer it in worship. Trust Him even when invisible battles rage around you.

3) Desperation lifts our eyes off of us and onto Jesus

vv. 12–18 – Hannah’s prayer is worshipful, her eyes on God, not the request.

Worship isn’t just singing—it’s focusing your heart on God, not your stuff.

Self-worship: chasing recognition, comfort, control.

God-worship: longing for His glory, even in waiting.

It’s like staring at your reflection vs. looking at a hero—you get caught up in yourself vs. inspired and strengthened by someone greater.

Worship God with your heart, not just your voice.

4) Desperation, sometimes, leads to deliverance. 

vv. 19–28 – God gives Hannah a son, Samuel.

Deliverance is a gift, not the goal. The real victory is a heart fully dependent on God.

Sometimes we only see the “Samuel” moments—the blessing—but the real growth happened in Hannah’s desperate heart.

Samuel points forward to Jesus—the ultimate Son and sacrifice, the greatest gift we could ever receive.

Summary: 

Desperation for God is the goal of the Christian Life

Worship flows from desperation, not entitlement.

Sacrifice proves that our worship is authentic and God-centered, not self-centered.

Response: How desperate are you for God?