Hannah's Prayer

© 2011 Jasper Life Publications

1st Edition in English – September 2009 2nd Edition in English – February 2011 1st Edition in Portuguese – May 1999

A Oração de Ana Translated from Portuguese with permission of Editora Árvore da Vida All rights reserved by Jasper Life Publications Inc. Jasper Life Publications Inc. 725 Viscount Road London, Ontario, Canada N6J 4G9 Phone: (519) 472-6620 www.jasperlife.com info@jasperlife.com ISBN 978-0-9739285-7-0 All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.

All rights reserved.

CONTENTS Preface ............................................................. 7 1 The Prayer that changed the History of Israel ...................................... 9 2

The Importance of Prayer .......................... 39

3

PREFACE This book is composed of messages given by Dong Yu Lan in March, 1994, in the city of Cuiabรก, Brazil.

5

Chapter One

THE PRAYER THAT CHANGED THE HISTORY OF ISRAEL

“And Hannah prayed and said: ‘My heart rejoices in the LORD; My horn is exalted in the LORD’ ” (1 Sam. 2:1a).

God’s word is full of mysteries. We need to read the Holy Scriptures with much prayer to receive the revelation of these mysteries.

However, in general, the majority of Bible readers read it superficially so that very few of them manage to see beyond the written words. Therefore, whenever we read or study the word of God, we have to ask God to give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation (Eph. 1:1617) so that He can reveal His mysteries to us.

God desires to feed His people through His revealed word, so every revelation given

by God is spiritual food to us. In the Old Testament, God used the manna as a type of Christ, the true food out of heaven to feed His people (John 6:31-35). Firstly, the manna was visibly supplied by God to the children of Israel during the forty years in which they wandered in the wilderness. This supply was seen by all the people. But there is another aspect of the manna which could only be seen by some people, the hidden manna (Rev. 2:17). It was 9

Hannah’s Prayer

called this because it consisted of a small portion of manna put into a golden pot which was in the Ark of the Covenant that was in turn inside the Holy of Holies. Whoever wanted to see this hidden manna would have to go through the veil, enter the Holy of Holies, remove the cover of the Ark of the Covenant and open the golden pot which was inside the Ark. There were two aspects of the manna in the Old Testament, a visible and a hidden one; it is the same today. When reading the Bible, some people only touch the “visible manna”, that is, the written words, while others manage to touch the “hidden manna”.

Although both aspects represent God’s supply, the last one indicates the grace of finding a more special portion hidden within each word of the Bible. May we all penetrate into the revelation of God’s word because it will certainly change our life.

Now let us see something concerning the book of First Samuel. What is hidden in the words of this book? What is the revelation that God wants to give us? What is the key that opens this book allowing us to enter into its revelations?

The central theme in this book is, no doubt, Samuel’s history. Therefore at the beginning, we see how Samuel came into existence. The history of Samuel’s parents is in chapter one. His mother, Hannah, was barren. She passed through several tribulations and afflictions. Her sufferings constrained her to pray to the Lord and because of 10

The Prayer that Changed the History of Israel

her prayer, Samuel was conceived. After praying again, she mentioned that the Lord would give strength to His king and would exalt the power of His anointed. When Hannah prayed for the first time, there was no possibility, humanly speaking, that her prayer would be answered because she was barren. When praying for the second time, there was not even a dream that there would be a king in Israel. We can see that through the prayer of a broken woman, God not only changed her history, but also changed Israel’s history. Her prayers, therefore, are keys that open the whole book of Samuel. Many spiritual principles are hidden in Hannah’s two prayers recorded in the first two chapters of this book which have many things to reveal to us about God’s will.

HANNAH’S AFFLICTIONS Hannah was the wife of Elkanah, a Levite, who lived in the hill country of Ephraim. Hannah could not have children because the Lord had shut up her womb. So Elkanah took another woman whose name was Peninnah (1 Sam. 1:1-2).

We believe that it was not because he did not have enough love for Hannah, his first wife, that he did that. On the contrary, we see that Elkanah loved her very much, even though she was not able to give him children. He needed to take another wife because 11

Hannah’s Prayer

among the people of Israel having descendants was crucial to keep and save the inheritance which each family and tribe had received when they arrived in Canaan. If one did not have children, his inheritance was lost.

The Levites were the tribe which was especially chosen by God among the twelve tribes of Israel to serve Him. And God had commanded the children of Israel to give to the Levites cities to dwell in (Num. 35:2). Elkanah and his family lived in the hill country of Ephraim and they went up year by year to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord in Shiloh. On the one hand, they offered sacrifices to the Lord. On the other hand, they enjoyed everything God had prepared for them.

Peninnah was probably proud of having given birth to the children of Elkanah and maybe provoked Hannah, saying, “I can have children of my husband, but you cannot.” Probably Peninnah provoked her because she was jealous when she saw the way Elkanah treated Hannah. Every time they went to Shiloh, from the sacrifice he offered, Elkanah used to give her a single portion, whereas to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her (1 Sam. 1:5). Not happy about this, Penninah bitterly provoked Hannah to irritate her (v. 6).

This situation troubled Hannah’s heart, so she wept and did not eat. Hannah was in a difficult situation because, although her husband loved her, the Lord had shut up her womb and her rival despised her to the 12

The Prayer that Changed the History of Israel

utmost. Elkanah, in turn, tried to comfort her saying, “Am I not better to you than ten sons?” But Hannah was still sad; she did not eat and she just wept (v. 7).

Many verses show Hannah’s agony: she was bitter in soul (v. 10); she was a woman of sorrowful spirit (v.

15); thus her complaint and grief were abundant (v.

16). Her pain reached such a high level that she did not have any release other than going to the presence of the Lord. Hannah prayed to the Lord because of this whole painful situation.

HANNAH PRAYS Because of Her Own Problems “And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the LORD and wept in anguish. Then she made a vow and said, ‘O LORD of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head.’ ” (1 Sam. 1:10-11). We can split Hannah’s prayer into three parts. The first part shows Hannah’s affliction and bitterness which resulted in a not so “spiritual” prayer. Her desire was to have a child. Because she was unable to conceive, she felt troubled and sorrowful. If she had a child, she would not suffer despising and provoking from Peninnah, her rival. We can see therefore, that her prayer 13

Hannah’s Prayer

began with seeking to solve a personal problem.

Not knowing how to solve this problem and neither knowing how to be released from her affliction and anguish, Hannah prayed to the Lord.

Although she was praying for her personal situation, Hannah’s prayer opened the way for God to act. Hannah did not worry about whether her prayer was right or wrong, she simply prayed. This shows us that many times we have certain concepts, mainly concerning what a “spiritual prayer” is.

Once I went to a meeting where the saints were calling on the name of the Lord one, two, three times… twenty times and no other word was said. So I said to them, “Saints, calling on the name of the Lord is very good because when we call on Him we enter into the spirit (1 Cor. 12:3). However, if we call on Him many times with no other word spoken, we do not enjoy everything the Lord wants to give us in that meeting. It is like going to a restaurant. First we enjoy the appetizer, and soon afterwards we enjoy the main course. If, when we meet, we just call on the name of the Lord, it is like going to a restaurant and keeping on eating the appetizer once, twice, three times… and not paying attention to the main courses. Do not keep thinking about what to pray, neither keep rehearsing how to pray. Pray! Look at Hannah’s example: her prayer began very simply saying, “Lord, look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me.”

This was the way Hannah started praying.

14

The Prayer that Changed the History of Israel

Because of the Inheritance As Hannah prayed, her prayer also advanced a little more when she said, “Give Your maidservant a male child.� What was a male child for? In order that the family could preserve the inheritance among the children of Israel. In the first part of her prayer, Hannah wanted to solve the problem of her shame, trouble, and the despising she received from her rival because of the humiliating situation in which she was found.

Now we notice that her prayer progressed because, when asking for a male child she was concerned about keeping the inheritance of her family.

The Israelites highly valued their inheritance. It included a piece of land which each family had received when entering Canaan, and which would be their right for all their lives. God arranged that each family have the means to support themselves with what the land produced. If because of negligence, however, someone of the family did not produce anything from the land given to him as an inheritance, little by little this person would become impoverished. Therefore, because of the poverty and not having means to support himself anymore, this person would sell his portion of the land of the inheritance. But after a certain time, he could get his property back. Among the people of Israel, every seventh year, any person who had sold his inheritance could get it back by paying the required amount. After another seven years, the opportunity was given to him 15

Hannah’s Prayer

again, and so on. At worst, not having the means to buy it back, after seven times of seven years, in the fiftieth year, his inheritance would be returned to him. That is why that year was called the year of jubilee. Why the year of jubilee? Because after fifty years, his debt was completely forgiven and the sold inheritance would be returned. It was certainly a very joyful year.

This is the reason the people of Israel in the Old Testament highly valued the matter of the inheritance.

Only if a family did not have descendants would there be no possibility of keeping or getting the inheritance back in case of having sold it. Likewise, marriages also had the goal of having children. That is what guaranteed the preservation of the inheritance. By marriage, they could have children and have descendants so that the family name of that family would not be extinguished among the children of Israel and the inheritance would not be given to others. In her prayer, Hannah also cared about this.

Christ is our Inheritance What does it represent today? The land of Canaan, which was distributed among the twelve tribes, represents Christ as our inheritance. At the moment of our salvation, each one of us received Christ (Col. 1:12), who is our portion of the inheritance distributed among the saints. The Gospel of John says many times that whoever believes in the Lord has eternal life. Also, 16

The Prayer that Changed the History of Israel

in First John we read that “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (5:12). Who is the Son of God? Christ. If we have the life of God, we have Christ. Every one of us who was born of God’s life has Christ as life in us. In the same way that an Israelite, when born within a tribe would have his share in that inheritance, we also have a share in the inheritance when we are born of Christ. When we received Christ, we all received an equally precious portion. Now, similarly, we need to work and cultivate the Christ that is in us so that something is produced.

Becoming rich in Christ depends on how much we are cultivating the inheritance we received. We should always ask ourselves, “What has been produced from the Christ who is in me?” Praise the Lord! After being saved, many brothers and sisters have been unceasingly seeking Christ. And the result of this is that the Christ in them grows more. This growth is manifested to other people and makes them ask, “What is different in them?” The difference is Christ!

Once a brother told me that while traveling to Cuiabá, there was a problem with the car tire. As it was already night, he and the others who were with him, after putting on the spare tire, decided to stop at the nearest city to fix the damaged tire. They were led by the Lord not to continue traveling without first fixing the tire, and they wisely acted in that way. They entered the first city they found, and not finding any garage open, they looked for a place there to stay for the night.

17

Hannah’s Prayer

So, not knowing where they would sleep there yet, they went to a cafeteria. They met a person there who wanted to help them. Afterwards, they discovered that this person was also a brother in Christ. While they were in the cafeteria, that brother noticed they were Christians, and because of it he decided to help them, arranging a place for them to sleep. How did he notice that they were Christians without knowing them?

Because even without noticing, they were expressing Christ.

What about us? When people observe us, what do they notice? Do we express Christ or the demons? Do they notice that we are Christians or do they consider us common and worldly? In the same way that the people of Israel cultivated the land which they received as an inheritance, we also need to cultivate the Christ who is in us. Something needs to be produced in us.

According to the gospel of Matthew, in chapter 13, we can see that it is possible to be either a good or a bad land, full of rocks or thorns or even hardened. In this passage, Christ compares Himself to the seed sown on the land. Christ has been sown into us. What is the result? If we do not adequately cultivate the Christ who is in us and we do not deal with the negative things that hinder His growth in us, we will become poor in Christ. We will not have anything either to support ourselves or to offer to others. In such a situation, we are weakened and led to sell our inheritance. We stop gathering together with other believers, we do 18

The Prayer that Changed the History of Israel

not read the Bible any more, and neither do we pray.

There are more than a few people like this! And when other people find out that they are Christians, they may even think, “If that is being a Christian, I do not want to believe in Jesus.” We can prevent this from happening to us only by diligently cultivating the life of Christ which is in us. May each one of us to whom the inheritance was given, be like good earth which produces increase: one thirty-fold, one sixty-fold, and one hundred-fold, to the glory of God! Because of God’s Need In her prayer, Hannah was firstly searching for a solution for her particular need to be freed from the shame of not having children. Later, we see that her concern was having a male child to preserve the inheritance. Then, Hannah advanced a little more, and prayed to the Lord that when her male child was born, he would be consecrated to the Lord and no razor would come upon his head. In the third part of her prayer, Hannah made a vow: “If You (…) give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head” (1 Sam. 1:11). Through this vow, God’s need was met.

How deep is the content of this small prayer made by a desperate woman! From a particular need, Hannah advanced to the need of her family, and finally, 19

Hannah’s Prayer

she met God’s need. We can see that Hannah’s prayer developed to the point of reaching God’s will. I believe that Hannah prayed in this way, not because she was planning it, but because her prayer opened up a way to the Lord. God listened to her, she conceived, and at the right time, she gave birth to son. Hannah kept him with her and raised him until he was weaned. In order to accomplish her vow, she presented the boy to the house of the Lord and she gave him to Eli, the priest, as one lent to the Lord and she made a second prayer.

HANNAH’S SECOND PRAYER Her Answer to the Fulfilled Vow The second chapter of First Samuel records Hannah’s second prayer. However, this time her prayer was different from the one she made in the first chapter. Her first prayer was a petition. Firstly, she asked something for herself, then she asked for her family, and finally, her petition was related to God’s need. In her second prayer, Hannah did not ask for anything more, she just worshiped the Lord. She was full of gratitude, full of thanksgiving. Reading her second prayer, we can notice that she would not have been able to pray in that way by herself. Even considering her experiences, this second prayer was filled with everything God desires. She mentioned the most important point in the book of First Samuel.

Therefore, in her second prayer we can see God’s 20