1 Samuel 1:20-28: a reflection

20When the time had come, Hannah conceived, and bore a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked him of the LORD.” 21The man Elkanah, and all his house, went up to offer to the LORD the yearly sacrifice and his vow. 22But Hannah didn’t go up, for she said to her husband, “Not until the child is weaned; then I will bring him, that he may appear before the LORD, and stay there forever.” 23Elkanah her husband said to her, “Do what seems good to you. Wait until you have weaned him; only may the LORD establish his word.” So the woman waited and nursed her son until she weaned him. 24When she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bulls, and one ephah of meal, and a container of wine, and brought him to the LORD’s house in Shiloh. The child was young. 25They killed the bull, and brought the child to Eli. 26She said, “Oh, my lord, as your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the LORD. 27I prayed for this child, and the LORD has given me my petition which I asked of him. 28Therefore I have also given him to the LORD. As long as he lives he is given to the LORD.” He worshiped the LORD there.

Hannah, who had prayed so earnestly for a son and received Samuel in answer, now does something remarkable: she gives him back to God. When the child is weaned, she brings him to the house of the LORD and dedicates him to God's service: I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives he is given to the LORD. The long-awaited son, received as a gift from God, is given back to God, held with open hands rather than grasped as her own.

Notice what Hannah does with the gift she received: she gives it back to God. Samuel was the answer to her deepest longing, a child she had wept and prayed for; and yet, having received him, she did not clutch him as her own possession, but gave him back to God, dedicating him to God's service. She held the precious gift with open hands, recognizing that it had come from God and belonged to him, and offering it back to him.

That offering back to God of what he has given us is a striking model of how to hold God's gifts. We can receive God's good gifts, and then clutch them as our own possessions, gripping them tightly, forgetting they came from him and belong to him. But Hannah held her precious gift with open hands, giving it back to God. The good things God gives us, our children, our relationships, our blessings, are gifts from him, held in trust, belonging to him; and we are to hold them with open hands, willing to offer them back to God, rather than clutching them as our own. Hold the good gifts God has given you with open hands, as Hannah held Samuel; recognize that they came from God and belong to him, and be willing to give them back to him, dedicating them to his service and his will, rather than gripping them as your own possessions. What God has given, hold as his gift, and offer back to him, as Hannah offered back the son she had longed for.

Lord, Hannah, who had prayed so earnestly for a son and received Samuel in answer, did something remarkable: she gave him back to you, dedicating him to your service, saying, I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives he is given to the LORD. She held the precious gift with open hands rather than grasping it as her own. Show me what she did with the gift she received: she gave it back to you. Samuel was the answer to her deepest longing; yet, having received him, she did not clutch him as her own possession, but gave him back to you, recognizing that he had come from you and belonged to you. Let that be a model of how to hold your gifts. I can receive your good gifts, and then clutch them as my own possessions, gripping them tightly, forgetting they came from you and belong to you. But Hannah held her precious gift with open hands. The good things you give me, my relationships, my blessings, are gifts from you, held in trust, belonging to you; help me hold them with open hands, willing to offer them back to you, rather than clutching them as my own. Help me hold your good gifts with open hands, as Hannah held Samuel, Lord, and offer them back to you, dedicating them to your service and your will, rather than gripping them as my own.