Need A Breakthrough?

Hannah prayed: “My heart rejoices in the LORD! The LORD has made me strong. Now I have an answer for my enemies; I rejoice because you rescued me.”

HANNAH WAS A WOMAN who needed a breakthrough. First Samuel 1:15 has Hannah explaining, “I am a woman who is deeply troubled” (NIV). Other Bible translations say she was oppressed in spirit.

Did she stay troubled and oppressed? What did she do to get out of her trouble and oppression? She looked up, and she poured out.

Look up: She went to the Temple, where she knew she could talk to God openly and honestly.

Pour out: Hannah tells Eli, “I was pouring out my soul to the LORD” (NIV). She was so free with her feelings that when the priest, Eli, saw her, he thought she was drunk. She had no inhibitions as she expressed her pain and sorrow.

Where do you go when you need to hold court with God? When I am experiencing incredible sorrow, pain, or overwhelming responsibility, I look for a place to talk, cry, pace, and maybe even rant and rave a bit to God.

This honesty gained a breakthrough for Hannah. She made a commitment to God and then kept that commitment. From her barrenness of womb and emptiness of soul, she came to a level place where she had the strength to give her beloved only son to God for full-time ministry.

She went from weakness to strength, and it started with an honest heart-to-heart with God.