This message,
“HANNAH’S PRAYER OF COMMITMENT –
FOR THIS CHILD, I PRAYED”
by Rev. Bobbi Morehead, PH.D. was preached at
The Potter’s House Church on December 1st, 2021
Pastor Hopper asked me to teach this lesson about Hannah’s prayers. So I knew that there was something or somethings that God specifically wanted me to learn through preparation to teach this lesson. I will share with you what God impressed upon me, and I believe that you will hear and receive a God nugget to challenge you to allow Scripture to lead, guide, and direct your life.
LET’S PRAY– Dear Jesus, I pray as we reflect upon the story of Hannah and her prayers that we remember to seek your kingdom first, that we find solutions and refuge in your house, that we keep our promises and commitments, and that we always remember to praise you and give you thanks.
YOUR WORD REMINDS US – In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
I pray your thoughts and not my own filter this study and that I only speak words according to your will- In Jesus Name, we pray, AMEN.
Psalm 27:4 One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple.
Psalm 27:4 is one of my favorite scriptures. I loved it so much that I had a comforter made for Rose’s bed with this Scripture. I want Rose to be wrapped in this Scripture, because like Hanah, FOR THIS CHILD, I PRAYED. I know Pastor asked me to teach this lesson because I can so easily relate to the prayers of Hannah.
I’m going to tell you the story of Hannah in my own words and include some scriptures from I Samuel chapters 1 and 2.
Hannah was married to a man named Elkanah. Hannah had no children and was deeply grieved about having no children. I think she was sorrowful for several reasons- First, In that era, women were judged as “less than” if they were barren. Additionally, Penninah (Elkanah’s other wife) constantly made fun of Hannah for being barren. But I believe there was an even greater, deeper reason why Hannah was heartbroken. She had a divine longing to have a child. Hannah knew she had a call from God to bear a child for kingdom purposes. It’s was deeper than a desire to nurture. It was a legacy longing- rooted in her devotion to God.
Hannah’s husband loved her so much and wanted her to know that he loved her more than his other wife (that’s a whole different story). He gave her extra “presents” to make her feel better about being barren. He even said, “Am I not better to you than 10 sons?” This, of course, did not alleviate the intense burden Hannah carried, knowing her purpose was to have a child for divine service.
During their annual pilgrimage to Shiloh to worship and sacrifice, Hannah prayed for God to give her a child.
She prayed so long and so hard and so often that words escaped her. She was so deep in prayer that Scripture says her lips moved, but no words came out. The temple priest, Eli, thought she was drunk and scolded her. Hannah’s response was, I’m not drunk. I’m just sorrowful. I am praying for a child so that I can give him unto the Lord all the days of his life for service in God’s kingdom.
Eli responded, “Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him.” 1 Samuel 1:17
1 Samuel 1:18 records Hannah’s response “And she said, Let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad.”
Hannah received instant peace. Nothing had changed in her situation, but God had spoken through Eli, and Hannah BELIEVED that her situation instantly changed. We know this by what she did- wiped her face, smiled, and ate.
The story continues, and Hannah had Samuel, and once he was weaned, she brought him to the temple in Shiloh.
1 Samuel 1:26-28 reads- “And she said, Oh my lord, as thy soul liveth, my Lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here, praying unto the LORD. For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him: Therefore also I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he liveth he shall be lent to the LORD.”
Samuel goes on to be a mighty prophet and man of the Lord – a pivotal leader of the Israelites. The Lord first called him at age 11. Little people can do mighty things for God even at age 11.
As I have reflected on the story of Hannah, God has impressed upon me several essential points:
1) RUN TO THE HOUSE OF GOD
2) TRUST GOD
3) KEEP YOUR COMMITMENTS
4) PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE
1) RUN TO THE HOUSE OF GOD
First, when you have a need, when your heart is broken, when you feel devastated and made fun of, run (don’t walk) RUN to the house of God. Pour out your sorrows to Jesus just like Hannah did. Hannah didn’t retaliate and give Penninah a piece of her mind, tell her off, smack her, or post about her on FB. She took her hurt to Jesus. Hannah didn’t look around her and say other people (less worthy than me) have kids, and I don’t, so I’m going to get mad at God and let bitterness take root and grow. Instead, She sought refuge in the house of God. She prayed about her situation. God, help me remember this important lesson. PRAYER CHANGES THINGS!
PERSONAL CONNECTION– I remember graduating in December of 2007 with my Ph.D. and thinking I’ve accomplished everything I want to in my educational/ professional goals. That distraction was no longer available. The following winter and spring, I constantly woke up early in the morning with an urgency to have a child. Looking back, I know it was a God urgency- A kingdom dream.
I was never a baby person, and honestly, my husband took care of Rose much more than I did when she was a baby. But I always had a deep desire to raise a child to boldly and bravely stand for Jesus and be a bright light. However, along the journey, David and I thought we would not be able to have a child. We looked into adoption and thought we were going to adopt a baby. I remember the day that dream closed. I came directly to the house of God and let my sorrowful heart talk to Jesus right here at this altar. Thank you, Lord, for always giving me a desire to seek refuge in your house and pour out my troubles and heartaches to you.
God did give me peace, and I wiped away the tears, and the Lord changed my countenance. My situation had not YET changed, but I received peace of mind to continue.
2) TRUST GOD
The second point God impressed upon me is Hannah’s example of trusting God and trusting His anointed one, Eli. When Eli speaks to Hannah and says, “Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him.” She immediately dries up her tear-streaked face, smiles, and eats with her family. She does not doubt the message of God or judge the messenger. The Word even tells us Eli fell short. He ignored his sinful son’s behavior and allowed the temple to be desecrated. But Eli was still the anointed one until God transferred that anointing to another. It was not Hanah’s job to judge the messenger. God’s message is far more powerful than any messenger He chooses. Hannah knew her lane. She prayed to God, and God spoke a promise through Eli. Hannah accepted that promise and felt instant peace even though she had yet to fulfill the promise. Lord, help me trust your promises and your process. Help me stay focused on your message and pray for your messengers.
3) KEEP YOUR PROMISES.
The third point God is speaking to me is keeping your promises. 1 Samuel 1:27-28 says, “For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him: Therefore also I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he liveth he shall be lent to the LORD.”
I prayed for Rose, and I promised to raise her to love Jesus to the best of my ability.
I pray, Lord, please never let my relationship with Rose become more important to me than nurturing Rose’s relationship with you. I will repeat that because God has so strongly placed this on my heart. Lord, please never let my relationship with Rose become more important to me than nurturing Rose’s relationship with you, Jesus Christ.
My greatest desire is to see Rose love and obey Your Word. Lord, help me celebrate Rose’s relationship with you because, FOR THIS CHILD, I PRAYED.
PERSONAL CONNECTION- We dedicate our babies to the Lord but do we faithfully keep that commitment? Do we celebrate the right things? Are we more concerned with grades, awards, sports, trophies, cute outfits, and entertainment? Lord, help me keep my commitment to you and follow through with the baby’s dedication. Help me celebrate the things that draw Rose closer to you. Rose loves youth rallies. She loves youth class. She loves Sunday school class. She loves going to church. I celebrate that.
Lord, I’m so thankful my child chose to sing a Christian song to try out for a solo for her winter concert at school. Lord, I’m so grateful my child has a desire to lead a P7 Bible Club at public school. I’m thankful I stand outside her bedroom door and hear her singing songs about Jesus as she drifts off to sleep. I celebrate this. Thank you, Jesus. Please never let me take that for granted.
Lord, help me follow through with my commitment to first and foremost raise Rose to LOVE you… because FOR THIS CHILD, I PRAYED.
I feel led to share with you an article I wrote in the Pentecostal Herald in August of 2012, which illustrates what I most desire to impart to Rose- an Apostolic Legacy.
LEAVING AN APOSTOLIC LEGACY
In 2010 God miraculously blessed me with my baby girl, Rose Marie Morehead. Our journey to become parents had been filled with the answer no.
Mother’s Day had become a day I would rather skip due to all the condolences and “comforting” hugs I received for not having the opportunity to be a mother. BUT GOD… decided to allow me the privilege of becoming a mother. My journey was marked by a series of “Letters to Rose” my daughter about what’s most important in life. If I had one last chance to impart an Apostolic legacy through a “Last Lecture,” or letter, this is what I would want my precious baby girl to know.
Rose, “Seek you first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33). God must be first. He must be the Alpha and Omega of your day, year, and life. Every goal you set for yourself must be grounded in your love for Jesus Christ and your desire to make Him LORD of your life.
Baby girl, always love this Apostolic message. Teach it, preach it, live it, love it, and PROTECT it. Every night during the first year of your life as I fed you and rocked you to sleep, I quoted Acts 2:38-39,
“Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.”
And then I would sing to you, “I’m a one God Apostolic tongue-talking holy roller born again Heaven-bound believer in the liberating power of Jesus name. I’ve been washed in the blood and sanctified by the Spirit. I believe in holiness and I suggest that you do the same….”
This song and passage of Scripture will never become outdated or irrelevant.
Rosie, one of Momma’s favorite Scripture passages comes from Psalm 27:4, “One thing have I desired that will I seek after that I may dwell in the house of the lord all the days of my life and behold his beauty and inquire in his temple.” Always love the house of God, the people of God, and the work of God. The best place to learn is in His temple or presence surrounded by His people. I want you to know that your Momma took this Scripture literally and sought refuge in His house. While I attended Western Michigan University, my favorite place to do my homework was at the church.
I have always loved just being in His house—your mom values education. I have many degrees. But the education I value most I learned in His House, from His Word, or by standing still and listening to His voice. Life can be stormy, but my Jesus always calms the storms. Only He has the authority to say, “Peace be still.”
Rosie, I want you to know that when life knocks you down, and you feel like you can’t get back up, you can read Philippians 4:13, which says, “I can do all things through Christ which strengthen me.” Repeat that over and over when you need the courage to take another step.
Know that your mind will often be where the most dangerous wars are waged, but you can choose to fortify your mind: “Whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of a good report, think on these things” (Philippians 4:8).
Memorize 2 Timothy 1:7, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power and of love, and of a sound mind.” Baby girl, the mind is such a battlefield because it is powerful.
When we can get our minds stayed on Jesus and meditate on His Word, faith grows, and powerful things will be accomplished through what you do, say, live, and sow.
Rose, never be ashamed to share your weakness with others. His Word says that when we are weak, we are strong in Christ. God designed us to need each other and support each other. Sometimes you will be the one loving on others and offering words of wisdom and support. Sometimes you will be the one feeling like you can’t take another breath, and God will send someone to speak into your life just when you need it most, pray for you, and love on you. It is okay to feel strong and weak. But I have learned over the years that He is the most active and powerful in me when I am weak.
Rosie, one of Momma’s favorite Scripture passages is Romans 8:38-39, which tells us that “Nothing can separate us from the love of God.” During the darkest hours, I have repeated that passage repeatedly as I hugged my Bible to give me peace and comfort. It is okay to literally depend on Jesus and His Word every second of every minute of every hour of every day.
I have read this letter to Rose many times. The greatest way I can keep my commitment to God “For this child, I prayed” is to pray for her everyday intentionally.
Hanah made a coat for her son each year. I envision her praying over this coat specifically and intentionally.
My husband introduced me to a book entitled “Praying Circles Around Your Children by Mark Batterson.” Batterson gives parents and leaders of children a great idea of praying for your kids. He says that our life is made of lists- a grocery list, an invite list, and a to-do list; why not create prayer lists? He writes . . .
“In fact, prayer is not about our agenda for God at all; it’s about discovering God’s agenda for us. But once we discover His agenda, we have to write it down. In my experience, it’s very difficult to pray with specificity, intentionality, and consistency without a prayer list. And for the record, I encourage you to keep a record. Then you can give God the glory when He answers your prayers.”
I then created a prayer list for Rose when she was four years old. Together, my husband and I pray that Rose Marie Morehead will be . . .
- COMMITTED – I pray that Rose will always love truth and stand for Acts 2:38.
- AMBITIOUS – I pray that she will reach her full potential in Jesus, dream big dreams, and do big things by loving and serving others and leading many people to Christ.
- COMPASSIONATE – I pray Rose always sees those who are hurting and that she helps vulnerable people have a voice and shows them real love and true friendship. I pray she never sees color lines or economic lines but instead that she simply sees everyone in terms of human lines and that all humans need Jesus.
- ENCOURAGING – I pray she continues to cheer everyone up and be sensitive in the spirit and minister to the hurting through a smile, a hug, a greeting, a prayer, a song, a “performance”…
- JOYFUL – I pray that she chooses to praise Him and be full of joy, confidence in Christ, and the peace that passeth all understanding.
- STUDENT – I pray that she loves the Word of God deeply and studies it, and dwells in it. I want her to love the Word, understand it, and find peace and tranquility in your Word. I want her to study to show herself approved.
- WORSHIPPER – I want her to love the House of God and see it as a refuge and a place for hurting souls to come together for strength, healing, and salvation.
- RIGHTEOUS – I want her prayer every day to be, “Lord, Create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit with in me.”
- FAITHFUL – I want Rosie to one day stand before JESUS Christ and for her to hear Him say, “…Well done, thou good and faithful servant (Rosie): thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.” Matthew 25:21
Sis Lindsay made us nine signs that you see here today that hang on her bedroom walls.
HER CURTAINS SAY, Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
HER COMFORTER SAYS, Psalm 27:4 One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple.
I want Everything in Rose’s room to remind her of Jesus. Every night I say, “I can do all things…” and Rose finishes the Scripture, “through Christ who strengthens me.” And I remember… FOR THIS CHILD, I PRAYED.
4) PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE
Hannah’s final lesson is HANNAH’S PRAYER OF PRAISE WAS MUCH LONGER THAN HER PRAYER OF PETITION.
Hannah’s song of praise is found in I Samuel 2:1–10.
This prayer was a thanksgiving prayer, a song of praise. Her song of praise consumes four times as much Scripture passage as does her prayer for a son. The prayers of rejoicing should and often do far exceed the prayers of request.
HANNAH’S PRAYER OF PRAISE TO THE LORD (Easy version)
1 Hannah prayed and she said,
‘I am very happy when I think about what the Lord has done.
The Lord has made me very strong.
I can laugh at my enemies because you, Lord, have saved me.
That makes me very happy.
2 Nobody else is holy like the Lord.
There is no other God except you, our God.
You are the only Rock where we can be safe.
3 Do not boast or speak proud words!
The Lord is a God who knows everything.
He judges everything that people do.
4 The weapons of brave soldiers may break.
But weak people who fall become strong again.
5 People who had plenty of food to eat have to work for it now.
But the people who were hungry have enough food now.
Women who could not have any children have now given birth to seven children.
But those who had many children are now alone.
6 The Lord gives both life and death.
He sends some people to their graves,
and he raises other people up.
7 The Lord makes some people poor
and he makes other people rich.
He causes some people to be important
and he puts other people low down.
8 He raises up weak people from the ground.
He lifts poor people up out of the dirt.
He makes them become friends of princes.
He puts them in places of honour.
The deep places of the earth belong to the Lord.
He built the world on a strong foundation.
9 He takes care of his faithful people.
But he puts wicked people in a dark place where they can do nothing.
It is not a person’s own strength that makes him great.
10 The Lord will destroy his enemies.
He will shout against them from heaven like loud thunder.
The Lord will judge everyone on earth.
He will make his king strong.
He will give power to the king that he has chosen to rule.’
God help me to remember the four things you impressed upon me through this study:
- 1) Take my sorrows to you and find refuge in the house of the Lord.
- 2) Trust your Word and your anointed leaders.
- 3) Keep my promises.
- 4) Continually praise your name- my praise must be far greater than my petition.
CLOSING
In closing, I want to share a song I pray over my daughter Rose every day because, as Hannah… FOR THIS CHILD, I PRAYED.
The song’s name is “I Speak Jesus” by Charity Gayle. She is an anointed Apostolic young woman, and her songs usher in the powerful presence of almighty God. I want to share the lyrics with you:
I just wanna speak the name of Jesus
Over every heart and every mind
‘Cause I know there is peace within Your presence
I speak Jesus
I just wanna speak the name of Jesus
‘Til every dark addiction starts to break
Declaring there is hope and there is freedom
I speak Jesus
‘Cause Your name is power
Your name is healing
Your name is life
Break every stronghold
Shine through the shadows
Burn like a fire
I just wanna speak the name of Jesus
Over fear and all anxiety
To every soul held captive by depression
I speak Jesus
‘Cause Your name is power
Your name is healing
Your name is life
Break every stronghold
Shine through the shadows
Burn like the fire
Shout Jesus from the mountains
Jesus in the streets
Jesus in the darkness over every enemy
Jesus for my family
I speak the holy name
Jesus, oh
Shout Jesus from the mountains
Jesus in the streets
Jesus in the darkness over every enemy
Jesus for my family
I speak the holy name
Jesus (Jesus)
Your name is power
Your name is healing
Your name is life
Break every stronghold
Shine through the shadows
Burn like a fire
I just wanna speak the name of Jesus
Over every heart and every mind
‘Cause I know there is peace within Your presence
I speak Jesus
PRAYER ACTIVITY
We will conclude with a prayer activity while the song “I Speak Jesus” plays in the background.
There are stones on the altar and sharpies. I want you to make a vow and write it on a stone, take it with you, and put it in a visible place to remind you of the vow or promise you make to the Lord.
My vow is to speak Jesus every day over my family. Sometimes I’m like Hannah. I don’t even know the words to say. But JESUS covers it all…. FOR THIS CHILD, I PRAYED… I speak Jesus over Rosie every day!
FOR THIS CHILD, I PRAYED – KEYNOTE PRESENTATION
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