What is the one thing you could do to your now that will change your tomorrow? Whilst here on earth, we are limited by Chronos time, so we have only the present at our disposal to manage. We constantly live in the unknown about what lies beyond the present. The story of Hannah inspired this message. Hannah and Peninnah, two women, married to Elkanah, a Zuphite who lived in Ramathaim. Hannah didn’t have children, and so Peninnah mocked and tormented her over and over again, for years on and on. Peninnah was oblivious that God was about to birth the first powerful prophet of Israel through her rival.
Because the Lord had closed Hannah’s womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her. This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the Lord, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat. 1 Samuel 1:6-8
Peninnah provoked Hannah, a woman destined to birth God’s prophet who will rule and judge Israel. Hannah was empty and had nothing to give in her eyes, so she continuously aggravated Her. In the fullness of time, Samuel was birthed through Hannah, the perceived barren woman. I wonder how Peninnah must have felt when Samuel was born, and he grew up to take up the role of the first prophet of Israel. Isn’t it interesting that the Bible doesn’t mention any of Peninnah’s children?
I am also reminded of how Daniel and his friends were persecuted for their faith, and eventually, they were redeemed by God in Daniel chapters 3 and 6. If everyone who was against their religion knew that their God could save them from the lion’s den and the fire, I imagine they would have acted differently; they would have been in awe of the God of the Jews and lived to serve Him too. So, I ask my question again, what would you change about your today that could impact your tomorrow?
I was recently provoked by a message about genuinely showing love to the people around us. Well, you might say that “Of course we have to love everyone around us”, but do we genuinely love everyone? How do we relate to the people around us who have nothing to give back because they have no impact or role in our lives? Are we unintentionally dismissing people who currently have nothing to offer us? If God opened your eyes to see that the people outside your circle and have nothing to do with you now are the ones holding your future, what would you change about your today? We are here on earth as pilgrims, and we do not belong here; therefore, everything around us, every decision about our lives, must be directed by God who knows our beginning and end.
It is important to see everyone as a true child of God irrespective of the little they have to offer you. Jesus died for everyone, and so every single person around us is significant to Him, and they are worth His love and our love too. I want to challenge you to have a bird’s-eye view of the people around you and allow God to help you open your heart to embrace all as Jesus did. Jesus was intentional about not associating Himself with just the rich and righteous, but He reached out to all and impacted everyone He met. Are you ready to break the box open and go out into the uncomfortable places and have the uncomfortable conversations to bring the kingdom of heaven down here on earth? Let me hear a big Yes and Amen!
The next right thing
What is the next right thing about how you relate to the people around you? What is the next right thing about how you go about your work? What is the next right thing about how you see yourself? The book of Esther centres around Queen Esther, who heard about a plot by Haman to kill all the Jews in the Persian Empire, and so she decided to get uncomfortable and do the next right thing. She had a choice to stay comfortable in her palace with her husband, King Ahasuerus and her maids, but she was challenged by her uncle Modecai to intervene on behalf of her people, the Jews. Modecai prodded her and gave a very profound response in Esther 4:13-15, “And Mordecai told them to answer Esther: “Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews. For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” What if God has placed you in your job for such a time as this? What if God has given you your community for such a time as this? In Queen Esther’s story, she prayed and called for a fast for all the Jews, and by taking this bold step into the unknown at the detriment of her life, she brought deliverance to the Jews. Her unknown was the possibility of being executed for approaching the king when unsummoned, but she trusted God and took that step of faith. I want to challenge you to change your now, make a move now, shift something right now in your season and see God unfold your unknown right before you.
Perseverance through the now
Our faith guarantees us permanent access to this marvellous kindness that has given us a perfect relationship with God. What incredible joy bursts forth within us as we keep on celebrating our hope of experiencing God’s glory! But that’s not all! Even in times of trouble, we have a joyful confidence, knowing that our pressures will develop in us patient endurance. And patient endurance will refine our character, and proven character leads us back to hope. Romans 5:2-4 TPT
If you are dealing with a lot of pressures right now, I pray that you have the grace of God to persevere so God will refine your character, and the change in you will lead you to see the hope you have in Christ Jesus. You can persevere by pushing beyond what your environment is saying to you and allow what God is saying to you to mould your character and change how you relate to the people around you, even the people who may be despising you. I can remember the dark seasons we went through some time back, and it felt like there was no light at the end of the tunnel. I believe we survived those seasons because we pressed more into God, who urged us through His word, to keep pushing and not give up. Eventually, we felt our lives changing and our characters changing, and even our situations changing. We stopped seeing ourselves as victims living with a victim mentality, but we began to see the hope ahead and the promises of God for our lives. I know that when your mind is clouded with all that you are going through, it can be so hard to push through that barrier to see the light ahead; but when you commit to prayer, reading the Bible and surrounding yourself with faith-filled people, the strength and faith you need will come alive.
Like Hannah, God is calling you to a life of persistent perseverance for your promise and not to give up because you tried several times, and it didn’t work. Pray your promises out; pray God’s plans and purposes for your life out. Do not give up, do not let the intimidation and confusion around you deter you. Whatever may seem like it has taken too long to manifest, know that it hasn’t because though we live in a Chronos time, our lives are guided and led by Kairos time. I want to encourage you to keep praying and trusting that God will change your heart and mind so you can see Him at work, even when there are no physical manifestations.
Hannah had a choice to give up and sit back and allow her rival to keep tormenting her, but she took the stand, and in the face of her critic and her adversity, she pushed down the barrier and prayed her heart out until even Eli the priest mistook her for a drunk. Even in the face of Eli’s offence, she was determined to receive her promise from God. In the face of adversity, there is a type of strength we are graced with when we lean more into God when we tap into the presence and anointing of God. God’s power fills you, it changes how you see your situation, and it opens your eyes to see the solutions around you. God has the solutions to every situation we face, and He wants us to call on Him. He is the author and finisher of our faith, the God who has the answers and knows all things. He has more insight into our situation than any other person. Sometimes you may not get the answer that you want, but you will get an insight into the situation, and that will give you the strength to go through it and the hope to wait for an answer.
Change the prayer and focus on the true source
I have been puzzled by Hannah’s story because I could not get over why she never prayed until that time. I understood that since they went to the temple in Shiloh yearly for the sacrifice, she must have been praying. I believe the difference between the prayers she prayed all these years and the prayer mentioned in the Bible is that this prayer stemmed from a change in her heart posture. Year on year on, she prayed, but she thought her husband Elkanah could provide the solution to her barrenness, and so even after praying, she would still come home sad and miserable. From Elkanah’s helpless response, we can tell that the situation was beyond him because, obviously, he could not give her children. Her husband Elkanah would say to her, “Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?” 1 Samuel 1:8. Once Hannah’s heart posture changed, she realised that the only person who could really help her was God. She tapped into the revelation that the people around her had no power to help her and that only God had the power and authority to give her a child. The bible gives my favourite verse in this story in verse 18, “Think well of me—and pray for me!” she said and went her way. Then she ate heartily, her face radiant, 1 Samuel 1:18. The interesting thing is that Hannah didn’t get pregnant on the day she prayed, but the spirit of God enveloped her, and she was content and rested in the assurance that God will answer her prayers.
Galatians 5:24-25 says that Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. It is sometimes hard to live our lives as directed and guided by God because our flesh primarily dominates our lives. Our passions and desires take precedent in our lives, and if they are not in alignment with God, all that we are left with is a life of misery and frustration. When we take matters into our hands, when we do stuff according to our desires and passions, with no guidance from God, we live like Hannah, daily praying to God but still allowing the rules and stuff in the world to influence our lives. The Spirit of God wants to come over you and fill you up so much that, even when you still see your mockers, critics or rivals, whatever they do, does not affect you. You will see what they do, but God’s power and love in you will be more than what they are doing to you.
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:1,10
When I got this word from the Lord, I saw the Lord bringing you into victory and His promises and plans for you being fulfilled. Stand firm in your faith and trust in your God, and know that, no matter how it looks or it may seem, He is at work, and He is creating the path for your breakthrough and victory. Step into the unknown territories, listen for His voice leading you and trust that He knows where He is taking you.
May you be filled with the Fullness of God and the Power of His Love!
Ameeen!!! Thank you for blessing me with this powerful post.
So glad you were blessed by it 🙂