In the opening chapters of 1 Samuel we find the story of a struggling family. Don’t you love, by the way, that the heroes in the Bible are the ones who struggle, the ones whose lives are messy? He came for the sick.
What’s particularly noteworthy about the story is that it would seem, on the surface, as if this family is in quite a good state. The genealogy listed in the opening verses indicate that this family is well off. They go to church and are devote believers (signified in their obeying the Jewish laws of observing the Pilgrimage Festivals). They give sacrificially (signified in Elkanah’s distribution of the portions of food to the priests and his family members). They have followed all the rules, yet there is still a deep problem.
The reality is that many of us seem on the surface as we’re in a good state, but at the core there is infection needing treated. We can follow all the rules, go to church, tithe, and even have money, but that doesn’t mean that we have it all together the way that we want the world to believe.
The problem is revealed in the strife between Peninah and Hannah, Elkanah’s two wives (it is most likely that Elkanah has two wives because his first wife, Hannah, was not able to have children, so he took Peninah as well as a surrogate; a common practice in that day). Notice that when strife comes into our lives, it’s always through interpersonal relationships. They make us or break us. They have the power to heal and give life, or to destroy and deal out death.
Hannah is the center-piece of the problems. She has both an external problem and an internal problem. Externally, Peninah is mocking her. This behavior is most likely driven by jealousy. Jealousy is a destructive thing. Be on guard. It’s subtle and hard to catch sometimes. Internally, she cannot have children. The internal problem is much more serious than the external problem.
Hannah takes only one of her problems to the Lord in prayer; her internal problem. She knows that she cannot control Peninah. She knows that she cannot stop Peninah from being jealous. Most of the time in our lives, we like to focus our external problems. We want to point fingers and blame others for our problems. We like to play the victim. However, we can’t control how others behavior. We can only make our own decisions. The reality is that Peninah cannot fix her true, internal problem. Only God can.
This is accentuated through two other characters in the story. First, Elkanah, Hannah’s husband, tries to fix her problem by offering her more food. He gives her all he has, but that doesn’t fix the problem that she cannot bear children. Throwing stuff at our problems will not remedy them. The second is Eli, the priest. Even the man of God cannot fix Hannah’s problems. He can only pray with her for healing.
Hannah, the one with the problem, is the hero of the story. This is what God does. He takes the suffering, the marginalized, the mocked and abused, and makes them the heroes of the story. This happens over and over again in scripture. She’s the hero of the story because she recognizes that no human being can bring her the healing that she needs; only God can. She goes to him and pleads with him to get involved in her brokenness, and he does. Let God get involved in your brokenness. He will be faithful.
