Deep calls to Deep

“Her husband Elkanah would say to her, “Hannah, why are you weeping?
Why don’t you eat? Why are

you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?” (1 Samuel 1:8)

A woman in distress. Her longing cannot be met with physical things. Food won’t satisfy; her brokenness comes from a place that only God can mend, and it’s for his glory.

Elkanah meant well. Her husband tried to bring comfort to his wife. She wanted a child. This was something the Lord had to do to bring glory to himself.

Her longing was deep. Indeed, deep calling out to deep.

“The deep of man’s need calleth unto the deep of God’s fulness; and the deep of God’s fulness calleth unto the deep of man’s need. Between our emptiness and His all-sufficiency there is a great gulf. . . . Deep calleth unto deep. The deep mercy of God needs our emptiness, into which it might pour itself. . . . Nothing can fully meet the depth of our need but the depth of His Almighty fulness” (SMITH, JAMES AND LEE, ROBERT, HANDFULS ON PURPOSE FOR CHRISTIAN WORKERS AND BIBLE STUDENTS, EERDMANS, 1971, VOL. 8, P. 11.)

God’s desires cannot be satisfied with earthly or material stuff. It can’t be satisfied with emotions, a temporary “joy-fix”. Other people can't appease the emptiness that only God can satiate. It must be birth from God for God's purposes and use. Elkanah’s questions missed the vast emptiness that God was trying to satisfy.

Are you waiting on God? Then wait. Man cannot fulfill the purpose that God his birthing within us. God does all things well in his perfect timing. Yes we must continue to cry out to him for he put the desire within us and he alone well satisfy it.

“Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again—my Savior and my God!” (Psalm 42:11)

Hannah waited and God delivered. She gave birth to Samuel who became a prophet unto God. Samuel anointed King Saul and King David; two men, one after the flesh and the other after God’s heart. King David in all his frailty, mistakes and sin was used by God mightily. He is in the lineage of Jesus Christ the only begotten son of the Father who brought salvation to all mankind.

If you wonder why the struggle is big, that’s because what we do not see is even bigger.

Father glorify yourself in us. We wait on You!

God Bless You!~Liz