Honoring Commitment!

And she made a vow, saying, Lord Almighty, if you will only look your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then i will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head. "I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life, he will be given over to the Lord." And he worshiped the Lord there. 1 Samuel 1:11, 27-28 NIV)

When we pray and make vows to God, do we honor them? Or do we simply use God--to get what we want and then ignore Him and what we've said?

Hannah not only received the response she wanted from God when she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, she also had other children (three sons and two daughters) because she kept her word to God. All of this after her husband's other wife--tormented her about being barren.

Everything we go through, happens for a reason. Even periods of barrenness--dry spells--when nothing we do seems to work the way we want it to work. That's okay--because in God's timetable--everything works for our good. Sometimes, God just wants to see what we'll do before He responds to our prayers.

I think I know how Hannah felt--it was bad enough (from a 21st century perspective) to share a husband, but to be tormented by the other wife because she had not conceived--yeah, I can see why Hannah would be bitter. There are times in our lives when we feel like God has forgotten us, but we must stand firm on the faith we have in Him--knowing that He never leaves us and will not abandon us--but His plans will be accomplished.

In order for God to trust us to do what we say we'll do, He allows us to go through things--not because He doesn't know what we'll do, but He wants us to know what we'll do in certain circumstances. As He has said in His Word, "It's better not to make a vow (a commitment) than to make one and not keep it (honor it)." (Ecclesiastes 5:5)

How many vows have we made or commitments to do something and did not do it? When things fall apart--who do we see as the culprit--for us not receiving what we wanted or receiving the derision of others? Until we are able to see us clearly--our motives and agendas for doing things--we are doomed to be disappointed. For if we cannot be honest with ourselves, can we be trusted to be honest with others or in our dealings with others?

Let's think before we make vows or commit to do things we know we are not going to honor. God looks upon the heart of a man/woman, but the rest of us--can only judge a matter by what we see--based upon what we do. And when judgment is made because of our inability to honor a commitment, we have no one to blame but ourselves.

Sincere Prayer!

"Then Hannah prayed and said:

My heart rejoices in the Lord;
In the Lord my horn is lifted high.
My mouth boasts over my enemies,
for I delight in your deliverance.
There is no one holy like the Lord;
There is no one besides you;
There is no Rock like our God.
Do not keep talking so loudly
Or let your mouth speak such arrogance,
For the Lord is a God who knows,
And by Him deeds are weighed.
                                                        (1 Samuel 2:1-3 NIV)

When we continue reading this prayer, we see the heart of a woman who had humiliated by her husband's other wife--Peninnah--who had children, but Hannah had none. God in His faithfulness to Hannah, heard her prayers and saw her heart when she pleaded for a child and now the child, Samuel is given to The Lord, through Eli to devote his life to serving The Lord.

We see a prayer--in sincerity--acknowledging God for all He is and all He does and confessions of faith for all He will do. All of this by a woman who had been ashamed of being barren, but now rejoices in the birth of her son--a son she dedicated to the Lord--rather than keep him close for herself--keeping her vow to The Lord.

We are told in other scripture references that it is better not to make a vow to the Lord than to make one and not keep it. Hannah understood the importance of keeping a vow to God and her relationship--her wisdom in knowing that He had heard and answered her prayer so she would no longer be humiliated, motivated her, knowing she could now hold her head high--after the birth of her son.

Are we sincere with God when we pray? Do we acknowledge our own shortcomings and ask Him to help us overcome them? Do we acknowledge who He is and all He has already done in our lives? Or are we just praying out of tradition with no understanding or relationship with God--not really expecting anything to change in our lives? Or do we treat God like He's supposed to be our "sugar-daddy" and we only talk to Him when we want something from Him? Do we understand that prayer is communication with God and we should communicate with Him daily (as often as we want) and then we should listen to Him speak to us--through His Word or to our hearts as still ourselves to hear?

I thank God daily for allowing me another opportunity to get living right for Him--not because I'm so horrible, but I acknowledge my imperfections; my impatience with people who I think should know better about certain things and my moodiness over situations I cannot control. I acknowledge who He is and all He has done--in my life and confess His Word--over my life: By His stripes, I am healed and whole; There is nothing too hard for God and because I am His, I can do all things through Him who loves me and do them well; I am more than a conqueror and victory in Jesus is mine to enjoy daily; no weapon formed against me shall prosper--no amount of dissension, no matter how many people speak against me--nothing they say shall interfere with God's plans for me--their words have no power to change my destiny as God has planned it. I don't know about you, but this is how I pray.

God responds to our sincerity and our faith, not our emotions for our emotions are fickle--they change as easily as the wind blows. But He knows if our faith in Him is real because He knows our hearts. And since He knows our hearts, we might as well be real with Him. Pray--with a sincere heart and faith to receive His answer.