The Glory of the Empty Womb

04.07.12

1 Samuel 2.9 9 “He keeps the feet of His godly ones, but the wicked ones are silenced in darkness; for not by might shall a man prevail. NASB

What are you good at? What is your gift? God has endowed everyone with some talent with which He intends to bless the world in some manner. God blessed the world with our birth did He not? Everyone born into this world is a blessing from God and His purposes and intentions will be worked out in that person’s life. Hard to imagine? It’s true.

The principle character in 1 Samuel 1 and 2 is a woman named Hannah whose life was, for a while, made difficult by the fact that she could not bear children. In those days a barren woman was thought to be somehow cursed because of her inability to get pregnant. It was a big deal. What made things worse for Hannah was a rival wife named Peninnah who seemed to get pregnant whenever the wind blew. And Peninnah regularly reminded Hannah of that fact just to make Hannah’s life worse. Everyone is good at something and Peninnah will be remembered for her ability to be a _ _ _ _ _. It was her burden to bear and she bore it well.

Now then, who is in charge of wombs? Well for sure, not Hannah – hers was on hold for a while; for not by might shall a man prevail. If Hannah could have done anything she would have retaliated at Peninnah’s verbal assaults on the fact that she, Hannah, had no babies. I heard an interesting thing yesterday: “if you have to lie to win, you still lose because you chose to lie.” Lying to win is a false win and therefore no win at all, because of the lie. Penninah chose ridicule to win because of her insecurity and her need to find approval with her husband as a wife. (Although the Scripture doesn’t say so, I think Peninnah’s looks matched her attitude: lipstick on a pig is only ever lipstick on a pig). For not by might shall a man prevail.

We might be good at certain things but the humble among us will admit that they are also lousy at other things. Hannah may have tried to retaliate against Peninnah, she may have secretly spit in her drink at times, but Hanna prayed. Her burden of childlessness was more than she could bear and she decided she couldn’t (and shouldn’t) bear it alone: she gave it over to God. Smart move.

Whatever we are good at is a gift from God but: so are the things we are not good at; for not by might shall a man prevail. Only with God does a man (or barren woman) prevail. Hannah may have been prettier and more preferred by her husband sexually, but she didn’t have any kids and culturally she was less in the eyes of everyone: including her husband. What drove her to despair, was also something that drove her to pray – and it was prayer answered that got her pregnant, not retaliation. Her despair was a gift from God as well. Tough times get us to look at life and look to God more than good times…for only by the Lord shall one prevail.

What are you not good at? Do you talk often with God about it? Are you mocked by someone else’s achievements and humiliated by the lack of your own? For not by might – our own abilities and successes – shall a man prevail. God desires to be the One to control our “womb” whatever that may be. For Hannah it was actually her womb – for someone else it is something else; but whatever it may be, our job is to take it to the Lord and watch Him destroy despair by changing our heart to believe in Him through the pain or humiliation of whatever it is we face.