I Samuel 1:17

I Samuel 1:17 Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him. Hannah wanted a little baby so bad. But she just couldn’t seem to have one. One day when she and her husband, Elkanah, were in Shiloh at the Tabernacle worshiping God, Hannah was burdened to pray about her problem. She made a deal with God. She prayed, “Lord, if you give me a baby boy, I will give him back to you for the rest of his life.” The old priest, Eli observed Hannah in her bitter anguish rocking back and forth moving her lips. He thought that she was drunk! Hannah assured Eli that she was only praying fervently for a need in her life. And Eli responded with our verse for today. He told Hannah to “Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition.” And God did! Hannah had only been home a little while when she realized that she was going to have a baby! And right about the next time to go up to Shiloh for their yearly trip to the Tabernacle, little baby Samuel was born! Hannah told Elkanah that she wasn’t going to the Tabernacle that year. She would love and nurture her new little baby boy. And when Samuel was weaned off his mother’s milk and on solid food, she brought him to Eli. She said, “This is the son that I fervently prayed for. I promised God that if He gave me a baby boy that I would give him back to God. And here he is!” And Samuel was a blessing to Eli. He did chores around the Tabernacle and was a great help to the old priest. And every year, Hannah came up to the Tabernacle with a new little coat for her son. Each year the new coat that she made was a little bit bigger than last year’s. And Hannah’s family grew too! God gave her three more sons and two daughters! God blessed Hannah because she was faithful to her promise!