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Good morning family.

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If you guys would please turn to 1 Samuel chapter 1 and 2.

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So we really dealt with what and how to pray.

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So we're going to deal with the why to pray today.

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It really was kind of pulled between two particular scriptures, but I really feel compelled to end in the real Lord's Prayer, and that's in John 17.

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So today we're going to deal with a lady who prayed.

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And in 1 Samuel it really deals with the issue of the birth of Samuel in the beginning and this wonderful story about a woman named Hannah.

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Hannah.

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I think many women here, I know that my wife particularly really understands this scripture.

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And I think many women here will understand that.

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So I do pray that you kind of get the heart of Hannah here as she comes before God in prayer and also in prayer or praise.

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So we're going to pray and then we're going to get in.

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Father, I want to thank you so much that you are good, holy, and true.

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Thank you that you are faithful, that your word is faithful.

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Lord, that your word always returns to you as you have intended it.

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And Lord, I pray that you would guide our conversation, that the full counsel of your word would be preached and taught,

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that you are high and lifted up, and that you would guide the words that are coming from my mouth, that you are honored and glorified.

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Thank you for these truths in the story of Hannah and why she prayed.

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Help us to grasp the importance of it for your glory in Jesus' name. Amen.

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So real quickly, I want to go through the doctrine of prayer and a couple of pointers that we talked about last week.

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We're probably going to go through these same things every week for the next two weeks after this.

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It says the doctrine of prayer is a means of grace offered according to the will of God, expressed in accordance with his words.

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Let me rephrase this again.

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The means of grace offered according to the will of God, expressed in accordance with his word.

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That's what the doctrine of prayer is.

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Prayer is the language of the soul, and as John Calvin says it, opening up of our hearts before God.

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You're going to see this truth come alive in the life of Hannah.

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Last week we examined the what and how to pray as taught by Jesus in the scripture.

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That's the model. I use that model all the time. That's how I pray.

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I follow this model. It has revolutionized how I pray, my purpose in praying, what I'm thinking about when I'm praying.

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And it's not like some miracle potion.

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It requires that I'm thinking through what I want to talk to the Lord about or bring to the Lord, and it really guides my heart and it realigns me.

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That's the other thing I want you to understand.

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Today we're going to be dealing with the why.

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Next week we're going to be dealing with when should you pray, and then we'll finish the week after that, to whom should you pray.

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I think we're going to end up seeing this reality in how people come before the Christ child, and it's going to be kind of cool.

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Prayer reveals our heart.

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You guys remember I shared with you that where your treasure is, there your heart will be also?

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Well, prayer just tells me what's in your heart.

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When you want to listen to somebody and see where their heart is, it comes from the heart, right?

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Whatever comes from the mouth comes from the heart.

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And so what you end up really hearing is a person's heart when they're praying.

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If they're focused on themselves, it's not what goes into a man's mouth and into his stomach, makes him unclean, it's what comes from his heart and out of his mouth.

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You can tell when somebody's really struggling just listen to their prayer.

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The second is prayer is about aligning ourselves with God's will.

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Are we aligning ourselves with God's will?

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The example I gave you there was Matthew 26, 36, when Jesus goes into the garden at Gethsemane and he prays and he says, not my will, but your will will be done.

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You're going to see this truth revealed in the life of Hannah and how she aligns herself with God's will and doesn't even realize it.

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It's really a cool thing.

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The word prayer in the Greek is pros ukoumai.

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Pros ukoumai, the word pros literally means to be near or to come before.

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Ukoumai means to pray or will.

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So obviously when we're praying, we're praying for the will of God as we come near to God.

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We want to align ourselves with his will.

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Now, why should we pray?

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Why should we pray?

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You should pray when your heart is heavy and there is only one person you can go to and that's to your God.

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You pray because your heart is heavy.

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That's what you're going to read here in Hannah.

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Hannah is a woman who is married to Elkenna and Elkenna has two wives, Penea and Hannah.

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And Penea has children, but Hannah does not.

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Now, interesting enough is every time they go to do a sacrifice,

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because it's that time of the year for them to go to the temple, Hannah on her way gets made fun of by Penea.

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And Hannah is really heartbroken.

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And you know, every man always has an answer.

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How many men are you?

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How many of you guys men are fix-it men?

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I'm a fix-it guy.

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Wife comes to me.

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She's upset.

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She's hurting.

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I can fix that.

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She goes, no, no, listen.

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Well, Elkenna doesn't listen.

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He does the same thing that every guy does.

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He tries to fix it.

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And we're going to read that in a minute.

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Okay.

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So I want you to notice this.

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So what ends up happening is on her way she gets made fun of and then she is, she goes to dinner and her husband comes to her.

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This dude just don't get it.

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Her husband comes to her and has the answer.

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Let's read, let's read 1 Samuel chapter 1 verse 8.

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One of the things I want you to understand is God knows your heart and your burden, so leave it with him.

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Watch Hannah's response.

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And Elkenna, verse 8, and Elkenna, her husband said to her, Hannah, why do you weep?

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I know you women are saying such a jerk.

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Why do you not eat?

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And why is your heart sad?

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Am I not worth more than 10 sons?

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That's stupid.

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I'm thinking, what are you talking, she wants a child.

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And he says, I'm more, listen, I am so much better than 10 sons.

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And she's going, no, you're not.

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Why would she say that?

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Why would he think that he's worth more than 10 sons?

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Because there's one thing that men don't understand.

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Men don't understand the yearning to be a mother.

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The desire to have a child.

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And when you go through what Hannah's gone through, and you are really hoping and praying that this time it will happen, and it doesn't.

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And then you go through more children and you lose them.

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You're like, what is wrong with me?

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Why isn't God giving me the desire of my heart?

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Why do I say that?

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My wife understands that.

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We've lost five kids.

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But God in his wisdom and his goodness has given us her heart to cry.

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And then Sarah was born.

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In addition to that, he then gives us more kids through adoption.

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So I'm like, okay.

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But get the point.

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It's the heart cry of a woman.

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And what's he do?

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I'm worth more than 10 of those little guys.

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And I know every mama bear in here would be like, no, you're not.

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Until they're gone.

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Then you might be worth more than 10, maybe.

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No, I'm only kidding.

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So this is what it says.

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It says after, verse 9, and after they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose.

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Now Eli, the priest, was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord.

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She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly.

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Do you see her heart now?

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Do you see her heart cry?

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What does she want?

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And verse 11 says, and she vowed a vow and said, oh, Yahweh of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant

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and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give your servant a son,

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then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life and no razor shall touch his head.

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I want you to hear her prayer.

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She comes to him with a heavy heart.

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Why do we pray?

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Because there are burdens you can't carry.

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We bring it to God, the only one who can answer her.

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Her husband, not knowing, he's not the answer.

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Look what it says.

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If you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant, how is she being afflicted?

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She's being afflicted because she can't get pregnant.

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There's this internal affliction of her soul.

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There's also the affliction of her, of the other wife, who she has to share her husband with.

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And then every time they go up, there's this reminder.

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So she goes to the only one who can answer her question and says, remember me and not forget your servant.

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You notice she doesn't say, remember me and don't forget I want to be a mom.

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She goes, I am your servant. Why?

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Because she knows that every firstborn son to break the womb is to be given to the Lord as his.

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I want you to understand that.

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Because she only gets one son.

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And what she does is she commits to being obedient to the scripture, to God's command, and she honors her promise.

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Look what it says in verse 12.

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And she continued praying before the Lord.

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Over and over and over again she comes before him, begging him to hear her prayer.

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Eli observed her mouth, and Hannah was speaking in her heart.

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Only her lips moved and her voice was not heard.

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Therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman.

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See, men don't get it.

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But there's one thing I think as men we can look at is, do we pray like that?

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As men?

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Are we really, with the burden heavy before the Lord, leaving it with him?

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And so one of the things I want you to see, Hannah could not go to her husband because he could not give her what her heart desired, a son.

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That's in verse 8.

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He could only give her what his hands could offer, which was a double portion.

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He'd take the sacrifice, he would get part of that sacrifice back, and he would feed his family, but to her, because I love you and I'm better than ten sons, here's double the meat.

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So she poured her heart out to Yahweh Ra'ah.

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I want you to hear that. Yahweh Ra'ah.

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You're going to notice something in the scripture, how many of you guys have heard the term Jehovah Jireh?

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Do you know Jireh is not in the scripture?

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The word Jireh is nowhere to be found.

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It's a term that's used because there denotes something that God says about himself as the Sho'al.

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The Sho'al.

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And I want you to see this, but here is Yahweh Ra'ah.

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Yahweh Ra'ah means the God who sees.

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The God who sees the very thing she desired more than anything else.

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She ended up surrendering to the God who sees her heart.

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God sees the deep things of the heart.

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God knows, and we can have confidence that he will accomplish his will and purpose.

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1 Samuel 1, verse 14-16, and Eli said to her, how long will you go on being drunk?

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Put your wine away from you.

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Notice Hannah's answer.

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But Hannah answered, no, my Lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit.

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Listen, there's one thing I know, that when a wife or mother is praying, she is deeply troubled.

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If she is in the room, locked up, begging her God to save you or care for you or heal you,

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it's because she deeply is troubled.

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I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord.

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There is a gentleman in the Old Testament, a prophet named Daniel, who did the same thing.

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As a matter of fact, the scripture says that God had sent an angel before he even started praying.

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They end up in a nice little fisticuff with Lucifer.

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And he's like, yo, I've been trying to get you this answer, but why?

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Because Daniel's heart was troubled and he prayed deeply and cried and wept for the people of Israel,

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not to be without a place nor a king.

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Verse 16 of 1 Samuel, do not regard your servant as a worthless woman,

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for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.

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What a woman.

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What makes it special? What makes Hannah, this truth so special?

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Hannah prayed in the secret place of her heart.

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How do you know that?

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Because she was praying and her lips were moving, but you didn't hear anything coming out of her mouth.

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So much so that Eli was like, why are you drunk?

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She goes, nah, I was meeting.

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I was praying to my God because I was deeply troubled.

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Listen, Matthew 6 says this, but when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your father who is in secret.

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And your father who is in secret will reward you.

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What does God do for Hannah?

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He rewards her because she met with him in the secret place of her heart.

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Philippians 4, 6 says this, do not be anxious about anything,

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but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God.

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When you're anxious and your heart is heavy, bring it and thank him for it.

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What you end up seeing literally in the next verses is exactly what happens with Hannah.

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See, God answers the prayer of a surrendered heart.

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In Philippians 4, 7 says, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

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Look at Hannah's change in the attitude of her heart.

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First Samuel 1, 17 through 20.

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Then Eli answered, go in peace and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him.

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What Hannah didn't even know is that God had already answered her prayer.

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And what she got from Eli was a confirmation, a moment of hope.

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God heard me.

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Can I have a little bottle of water?

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One of the things I think we don't see and we don't understand is that the importance that Samuel plays in the future of Israel.

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What happens with Samuel?

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She didn't know what God was going to do with Samuel.

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The times were going to change.

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Samuel was raised up not only as a high priest, but a prophet who would bring about the kingdom, the king, and who would eventually also be the prophet.

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She never saw this coming, but God did.

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So what you see in the reality of Hannah's petition before God, because she had already set in her heart to give to God what was rightfully his.

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She prayed according to his will.

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As a servant of the Lord, God grants her her petition.

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Look what it says.

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And she said, let your servant find favor in your eyes.

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That's what she says to Eli.

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After Eli says, hey, may the Lord grant your petition.

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This word, let your servant find favor in your eyes, literally means may you see the favor and grace of God.

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May you see the favor and grace of God.

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This is what it says.

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Then the woman went her way.

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And ate.

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And her face was no longer sad.

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Do you remember what happened in the beginning every time she would go and he would give her a double portion?

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She wouldn't eat.

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And he's like, what's wrong with you?

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Why aren't you eating?

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Because I'm too heavy.

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My heart's too heavy.

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My heart's too troubled.

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She prays to the Lord.

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She gets up.

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Here's the answer.

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That's fine.

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And then literally walks away, no longer sad.

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No longer burdened.

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She came before the King to the one who can answer her prayer.

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And she is fully confident that he has done this.

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She's no longer sad.

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Confidence and peace that God heard her heart cry produced in her heart a longing to come before him, prostrate in praise.

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That's what ends up happening.

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She is fully confident that God has heard her.

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And she then goes after it's all said and done and praises him in a prayer of praise.

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We'll get to that in a minute.

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She's there.

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Verse 19.

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They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord.

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Do you see what that one moment of surrendering her heart before God, the trouble she lays at his feet, she walks away, no longer sad, which brings her to a place of worship.

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They went back to their house at Rama.

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And Elkanah knew his wife and the Lord remembered her.

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Do you hear that?

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She went back praising God, knowing that God had heard her prayer.

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And the scripture says that when Elkanah slept with his wife, the Lord remembered her.

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You want your prayers?

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You want God to remember you in your prayer?

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Pray according to his will.

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And he will always answer it.

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And look what it says in verse 20.

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And in due time, Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, I have asked for him from the Lord.

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This is like that Yahweh.

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This is like that Jehovah Jireh.

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God provided me a son.

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That's not what it means here.

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It's actually the word Yahweh Sha'al.

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Yahweh Sha'al.

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The Lord who grants requests.

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Isn't that an amazing statement?

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So when we think of God provides, it's not that God provides.

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Of course he provides.

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It's that God grants requests.

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And if your request is in alignment and accordance to his will, he will answer you.

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He will reward you, the scripture says.

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Turn to Psalm 37.

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Psalm 37.

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Verse 1 through 7, and I want you to hear what David says concerning this truth.

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Psalm 37, 1 through 7.

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Fret not yourselves because of evildoers, and do not, and be not envious of wrongdoers.

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That's Panaea.

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For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb.

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Trust in the Lord and do good.

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Dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.

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Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.

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Commit your way to the Lord.

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Trust in him and he will act.

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Not might.

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He will.

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He will bring forth your righteousness as the light and your justice as the noon day.

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Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him.

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Fret not yourselves over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices.

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Just because bad people seem like they're always prospering.

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Trust me.

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It's a temporary thing.

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But for those who trust in him, he will act.

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Hannah fulfills her promise and gives Samuel to Yahweh.

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Her heart fully surrendered in gratitude to her God for being Yahweh Sha'al.

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The beauty of Hannah's surrendered heart to her God results in praise.

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And every surrendered heart should only respond in the same way that she does.

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In praise.

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When God does this thing and there's a prayer answered, the only response should be praise.

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Look at what she says here.

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Samuel chapter 2 verse 1 through 14.

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And Hannah prayed and said, My heart exalts in the Lord.

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That word exalts with the U is rejoices.

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My horn is exalted in the Lord.

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My horn is the child who has come from her.

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And this word exalted means to be raised up.

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Literally, Samuel, my horn Samuel, will be raised up in the Lord.

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Why?

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She dropped him off at the temple and left.

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God raised the boy.

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She gave to the Lord the firstborn son which she had committed to in her heart just for the purpose of birthing a child for him.

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What an amazing thought.

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Do you know Mary does the same exact thing?

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So when you think about Christmas, you think about Mary, remember Hannah.

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Because Mary exalts in the Lord for being considered by God to carry the incarnate God into creation.

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My mouth derides my enemies because I rejoice in your salvation.

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There is none holy like Yahweh.

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There is none besides you.

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There is no rock like our Elohim.

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Talk no more so very proudly.

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Let not arrogance come from your mouth.

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For Yahweh is the Elohim of knowledge.

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And by Him actions are weighed.

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The bows of the mighty are broken.

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And the feeble bind on strength.

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This word bind is the word girded.

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The feeble are girded on strength.

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Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread.

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In other words, those who had plenty end up really working just to get bread because they have no other way to survive.

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Look what it says.

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But those who are hungry have ceased to hunger.

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The barren has borne seven.

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And she who has many children is forlorn.

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The Lord kills and brings to life.

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He brings down to Sheo and he raises up.

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The Lord makes poor and makes rich.

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He brings low and he exalts.

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Raises up is the word there.

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He raises up the poor from the dust and he lifts the needy from the ash heap.

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To make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor.

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For the pillars of the earth are Yahweh's and on them he has set the world.

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Listen, if you honestly think that God is not in complete total sovereign control,

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you've totally missed the point of Hannah's prayer here.

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No one chooses where they go.

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God has determined that.

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The Lord makes poor and rich.

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The Lord kills and brings to life.

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The Lord brings down to Sheo and raises up.

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Not you.

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His determination.

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He is the God of all things.

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And when you grasp that truth in reality,

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and when you go before God in the confidence before the throne of God,

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you know he will answer you.

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People wonder, man, I wish I just knew.

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I wish God would answer me.

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Why would God have to answer you when you don't even believe he exists?

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See, if you believed he existed,

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then you would understand that the whole reason why we're saved is because he loved you.

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And in his grace gave you a gift of faith so that you would believe.

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Not because you could choose.

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It's an amazing statement she has here.

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Verse 9.

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He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, and the wicked shall be cut off in darkness.

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For not by might shall a man prevail.

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The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces.

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Against them he will thunder in heaven.

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The Lord will judge the ends of the earth.

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He will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.

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Who do you think she's talking about?

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Who is the horn of his anointed?

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And look at Elkanah's response.

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Then Elkanah went home to Rama,

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and the boy was ministering to the Lord in the presence of Eli the priest.

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What a heart of prayer.

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Going broken and troubled and heavy,

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and you leave it there knowing that you prayed and you have left your heart and your soul there.

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And you've met with God in the secret place.

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And God answers your prayer because it's according to his will and his purpose that Samuel be born.

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Why should you pray?

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Hebrews 11, verse 6.

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Because of this one reason, it says, And without faith it is impossible to please him.

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For whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

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Why should we pray?

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You pray because you seek after God.

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You pray because your heart is troubled and there's only one who can answer that prayer

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and carry and take away the burden of your heart.

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You pray because you want to praise him because he is good and faithful to his people.

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That's why you pray.

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You pray because he commands you to.

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But I don't know how to pray.

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Jesus gave you the answer for that.

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You exalt God or praise him.

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You surrender your heart before him.

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You ask him and he will give you the desires of your heart because you have now aligned your will to his.

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00:33:05,000 --> 00:33:08,000
He will provide.

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00:33:08,000 --> 00:33:11,000
You repent of your sin and you forgive others.

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You petition God for your desires and your issues and you also petition God for others.

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And then you exalt and praise him.

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Why? Because he is good.

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Simple.

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Prayer is not difficult.

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Make it simple.

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Don't be like the Pharisees who give these long prayers and or like the Gentiles just go before God in the secret place of your heart

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and just pour your heart out to him.

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So now we know the why of prayer.

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Next week we will deal with the when.

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And to whom? Should we pray to the Father? Should we pray to the Son?

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Should we pray to the Holy Spirit?

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Should we pray to all three?

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The God in one.

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We are going to answer that in two weeks.

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Father I want to thank you so much for your faithfulness and goodness.

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Thank you. You are faithful and true. Your word is true.

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Thank you for this amazing story of Hannah.

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Thank you for helping us to understand why we pray.

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Father we thank you and praise you in Jesus name, Amen.