Day 4: The Mistaken Identity

Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore, Eli thought she was drunk. So Eli said to her, “How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!” (1 Samuel 1:13,14)

Let me usher you to the beginning…She was a desperate woman who wept day and night from the ridicule of her cowife because she could not get pregnant; the Bible says that “…her rival also provoked her severely to make her miserable.” The narrator goes further to describe the depth of the desperation “…that the Lord had shut her womb,” what can get worse than that? Even God was involved in her anguish.

In her desperation, she was blind to the overflowing love of her husband, who lavished her more to compensate for her childlessness; nothing could satisfy her. One time, her husband was so pained by her desperation that he lashed back at her …Why do you keep weeping? and why don’t you eat? and why is your heart so grieved? Am I not better to you than ten sons? 

Don’t you feel the same, seeking Soul? Sometimes, you are so wounded that you don’t realize you hurt those around you. You lash back at what you don’t know, and it’s even worse if you feel like God has a part to play. That’s when Hannah resolves to go and settle her matter with God, who had shut her womb. It’s a long journey, so she prepares for it. She travels to Shiloh, which is about 24 kilometers (15 miles) east of Ramah, an exhausting 5-hour walk.

Once in the temple, Hannah does not go to the priest but immediately begins to pour her soul to God. The priest Eli, a man of God, is watching from a distance and concludes that the woman is drunk! Yes… typical of the men of God, Eli, the priest, gives his judgment without empathy. “…“How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!” Oh No, not the man of God too… The man of God who had not heard from God for so long was short of discernment. His focus was on the wrong place! Instead of focusing on her heart, the narrator says, “…Eli watched her mouth.”

Hannah had faced a complete cycle of “Mistaken Identity”:

1. To Peninnah, her co-wife, she was Barren.
2. To Elkanah, the Husband, she was Winning.
3. To Eli, the High Priest, she was Drunk.

Seeking Soul, I hear you say, “That is unfair.” This morning, I am seated in the “Restaurant” that has become my “safe space.” Gazing at all the families, young people, and spiritual leaders walking in and out. Some are seated in isolated corners, others chartering in groups in “Arabic.” I don’t know the depth of their conversations, but I may not be wrong to say, that someone here is saying … “That is unfair.”

Seeking Soul, are you surrounded with “Peninnah’s”? Beautiful “Pearls,” as her name suggests, are those who have everything working out for them. They live with you; some are your colleagues at work, and others are your fellow members of the church. Every time you look at them, you judge yourself. Compared to them, You have failed, they are perfect, you don’t seem to be productive, you are “barren.” Are you there?

Seeking Soul could be you are surrounded by “Elkanah’s. These people identify with us in every need but don’t know how to meet our needs. They are the “Purchased of God” acquired just for us, as “Elkanah” means. But they reach a point of desperation where they get so frustrated, not knowing what to do to help us. At that point, without expecting, they lash out: Can’t you see, I am here for you. “…Why do you keep weeping?” But they have no idea that the depth of our needs is beyond their human intervention.

Seeking Soul, maybe you are a victim of the “Eli” syndrome, the lofty ones, the sanctified, set apart, holy folk who seem next to God. These elevated spiritual giants look at you from a distance and immediately diagnose your suffering. Sometimes, they even claim to have been sent by God, they saw a dream, they have a new revelation about you, but they get it all wrong. They accuse you of what you are not; you expect them to be different from the rest, But they turn out to be the worst of all.

Stand up, oh seeking Soul, as Hannah did; she cannot bear these “mistaken identities” anymore; she gathers all the courage left and, for the first time, speaks out her position. What lessons do we learn from Hannah?

1. Face your criticisms with humility: “No, my lord, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit. 
2. Reject the false accusations: I have drunk neither wine nor intoxicating drink, 
3. Identify the genuine need: but have poured out my soul before the Lord. 
4. Stand Blameless in your actions: Do not consider your maidservant a wicked woman, 
5. State your case truthfully: for out of the abundance of my complaints and grief, I have spoken until now.”

At this point, the man of God comes to his senses and says “…“Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him.” Then Hannah makes the one prayer of the person she really is “…“Let your maidservant find favor in your sight.” The narrator closes this confrontation at the temple with this memorable statement, “…So the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.”

Seeking Soul, today as you seek God in prayer and fasting, follow the footsteps of “Hannah.” She appealed to God’s favor, just as her name suggests. Yes, in the depth of your anguish and seeking, appeal to the “Grace of God.” Seeking Soul Thus says The Lord, Only by Grace can you enter.

Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:14-16)

Seeking Soul, Take your Bible Now, and read the whole of First Samuel Chapter One, and meditate on verses thirteen and fourteen. What “mistaken identity” will you confront in your prayer today?