And she said, “O my Lord! As your soul lives, my Lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the Lord. For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. Therefore I also have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the Lord.” So they worshiped the Lord there. (1 Samuel 1:26-28)

Lending Our Children To The Lord

The story of Hannah is a story of a woman’s deep devotion to the Lord. She was married to a man named Elkanah, who also had another wife named Peninnah. Hannah could not have children, and because Peninnah had children, her rival severely provoked her. When the family went to Shiloh to worship at the Tabernacle, Elkanah would give Hannah a double portion of the offerings made that day. Elkanah loved Hannah more than Peninnah.

One year, when Hannah came to Shiloh, she audibly prayed to the Lord in her grief for a male child. Hannah promised if God would grant her request, she would give her son to serve the Lord all the days of his life. The High Priest Eli heard Hannah’s weeping and supposed her to be drunk. When Hannah told Eli what she had prayed, the priest told her to go in peace and that God would grant her request.

In time, Hannah conceived and bore a son. They called his name “Samuel,” which means “heard of God,” because Hannah had asked for him from the Lord. Hannah kept Samuel home for about three years or until he was weaned and took him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh. Keeping her promise to the Lord, Elkanah and Hannah left Samuel with Eli, where the child ministered to the Lord before Eli, the priest. Samuel would become the last of the judges of Israel.

The prayer of Hannah is a model for every parent to follow. It is not the purpose of the Lord to have a parent deliver their children to a priest to serve. The motive of Hannah’s heart is what is needed in the kingdom of God. Hannah loved the Lord with all her heart. She was willing to give her son to serve with Eli, the priest. The Lord blessed her with three sons and two daughters. Samuel became a godly example of devotion to the Lord. The lesson to take from Hannah is the need for every parent to dedicate their children to the Lord by teaching them the way of truth and righteousness.

Children live under the microscope of peer pressure, immorality, social influences, and a host of challenges to a belief in the Lord God. They will grow up accepting the teachings of the world or their parents. Hannah planned to devote her son to the Lord, and she did. Her act of love was an act of sacrifice. She was willing to do whatever was necessary for the praise of the Lord. Parents must realize the importance of a daily walk with the Lord to lead their children to love the Lord.

Too often, parents do not pay attention to the spiritual needs of their children. Parents wring their hands after their children “grow up in the church,” when they leave home, they leave the Lord. The reason so often is that the children never saw God in the home. They were never taught devotion to the kingdom of God. Hannah devoted her son to the Lord. Parents must devote their children to the Lord every day. It is demanding work, and there are no mulligans or do-overs. Parenting is fraught with danger, and it is a one-time opportunity. Children must be given to God, teaching them to develop their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, devoted to the work of the kingdom, by the efforts of the parent.

Hannah’s prayer should be the prayer of anyone who is a parent. What the world needs more than anything are more godly young men and women. Children who know the Lord. Parents who instill in their children a devotion to God so that when they marry, they seek heaven with their loved one. There is no quarter given. No exceptions to the rule. Devoting children to the Lord requires everything. Give your children to the Lord, and He will give you enumerable blessings.