The Peace-Thief

Hello There!  I hope you're all doing well.  It's almost incomprehensible to think May 2018 is already here.  Hello?  I don't know, but time seems to be whipping by and I for one wish it would slow down a little.  It feels as if we're all on a reality TV show fast-forwarded, right?

Anyways, in my 2018 "to read" stash I collected in January, I picked up Uninvited by Lysa TyerKeurst.  In part of the book, she reflects on the story in 1 Samuel about the two wives of Elkanah, Hannah and Peninnah.  I hadn't visited this story in a while and was happy to read it again.  The next day, I heard a radio speaker speaking on the same passage.  Later that week, I opened my Bible to the very same passage.  Three times?

In summary, Elkanah was an Ephraimite with two wives, Hannah and Peninnah.   Peninnah was fertile and had borne him many children.  Hannah was barren and very ashamed and disappointed by it.  Yet, Elkanah, seemingly, loved Hannah more. He showed this by giving her double portions of meat while only giving Peninnah and her children one portion.  Here is the thing, both women were blessed, Peninnah had children, Hannah had her husband's devotion.

But, each woman wanted what the other had. 

Every day, all day long, everywhere we go,
we are hit with images, messages, and ideas that feed our appetites for what we don't have.

If we're not careful these messages can consume our thoughts and further convince us that we have been disenfranchised, dismissed and disregarded.   "Why can't we have what we believe is our right to have?"  Before long, disappointment and discouragement creep in.  Just like Peninnah and Hannah our "want" can become so magnified that we will be blinded to what we have already been blessed with. And, this, my friends, might be a thief of peace and contentment. 

Let me make a disclaimer here, I don't think our "desires" are necessarily bad as long as our desires line up with God's.  And, as long as our desires don't overcome our thoughts to the degree that they shadow what God has already done in order to attain what we see Him doing in someone else's story. 

I was on line to pay my groceries the other day and in front of me there was a young mom with her what looked like 5 or 6 year-old.  He was very upset because he wanted a candy from the candy stand next to the cashier.  (Thank you supermarkets for doing this to us moms.)   Mom had a cart filled with food which obviously was for him, but he could not appreciate it because he wanted the candy.  This mom was a rock star.  She didn't scream at him, she didn't get embarrassed, she didn't make a bigger scene than the one her son was making, she just stood on her decision.  She left calmly after paying, and as the little boy saw that his mom did not budge, he finally settled and they went on their way.  Sometimes, we can become embarrasingly like this little boy, God has a grocery cart filled with what we actually need, but we are crying for the chocolate bar that we cannot have.  

Peninnah went even further than making a scene, she used the blessing God gave her as an advantage to mock Hannah's apparent inabilities.  This is where Peninnah blew it.  Her children were a blessing from the Lord, she didn't need to hide that, but she flaunted her blessing before Hannah in order to cause her pain.  Hurt people, hurt people.  Perhaps this behavior appeased Peninnah's own feelings of rejection inflicted by her husband's lack of affection.  Hannah could have easily milked her husband's attention to the same in return.  Could you imagine their social media accounts?  But, she didn't.

Lysa mentions in her book, that we sometimes try to get our needs met outside of the will of God and this sometimes is what gets us into deeper trouble and/or delays the fulfillment of His plan in our lives.  Peninnah's actions most probably inadvertently provoked her husband to draw even farther away from her., further disappointing her.  How many times have we reacted the wrong way ushering in the very results we were trying to avoid?

Hannah responded to this craziness by pouring her heart out before the Lord.  Eli, the prophet, was at the doorpost of the Lord's house, he heard sobs and looked to see a woman crying out.  He watched as she wept bitterly, her lips were moving but no voice was heard. Eli was convinced she was drunk or perhaps even looney. He reprimands her and tells her to put her wine away.

Friends, family, social media, television, none of these sources can really do anything about our situation.  They can listen, they can form opinions, they can offer incomplete solutions, but the only One that has the true and effective remedy for our pain is Christ.  The Lord may lead us to speak to a specific person, nonetheless, we need to go to Him first and allow Him to lead our healing journey.  

Hannah corrects the prophet confirming that she, in fact, was not drunk, she was a woman who was deeply troubled.  She said, "I'm not a wicked woman, I'm here praying out of my great anguish and grief."  Eli, in turn, doesn't really ask what grieved her so, he may not have even been that concerned.  But, he calms her with this word:

"Go in peace.  And may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him"

1 Samuel 1:17

He may not have thought much of what He said, but Hannah's spirit grabbed onto his words as a promise from God Himself. These words became the turning point that would change her life, her attitude and planted hope in her spirit.  Did Peninnah stop bullying her?  Probably not.  Did she have a baby the next day?  No.  But, she had a promise from the Lord and she believed it and she would wait and stand on it until it happened.  

I don't know what you are asking the Lord for as you visit with me today, but I can tell you this, I'm with you, I have some needs before the Lord.  And, I too, have a choice to make.  Will I look at the blessings of others and convince my self that God has not done enough for me?  Or will I go to God first, pour out my heart, and allow Him to heal me and breathe a promise of His plan to bring me joy even as I wait? 

LESSONS LEARNED

Desire what He has for me, not what someone else has.
Go to Him first to get what I need.
Know, He has remembered me, He has not forgotten.

And, He will answer my prayers "in the course of time." (v.20)

Believe, Trust, Wait & Stand