From Ben – 6 November 2016
I have recently been deeply challenged by ladies. Not the ladies in the church or those who keep me in shape at home, (ie. my wife and 3 daughters), but the ladies who have been challenging me recently, have been 2 ladies in the Scriptures, in the books of Ruth and 1 Samuel.
Ruth’s life, as we have begun to discover in our morning sermons, is one of clear faith and strong conviction. Today we are going to be challenged by her uncompromising commitment to become a follower of God.
The other lady who has challenged me is Hannah. She appears at the beginning of 1 Samuel, which is the book I am reading in my early morning devotions. Hannah does not have a child, so she cries to God year in and year out in fervent, trusting, pleading prayer and in due time God hears her and grants her the ability to conceive. She is such a woman of faith that she pledges to God that he can have her little boy as soon as he is weaned, perhaps 4-6 years old.
I can’t begin to understand how hard it must have been for her to hand over her son, her only son, still a baby in many ways, to Eli the priest at the temple. As the story goes on, each year she visits him and brings a new little robe for him. Hannah shows faith, trust, commitment, and courage. She is prepared to do the hard thing to honour God.
May God, in grace, cause us to have the faith and courage of Ruth and Hannah.