Relentless Hope预览

Day 2: Show Up to the House of God

After a disastrous meal with her family, which ended with her weeping and refusing to eat, Hannah’s next move was instrumental in seeing her miracle. She showed up at the temple. She was a mess, but she still showed up. When she got there, she let out a cry that you completely understand if your heart has ever been shattered by loss and disappointment. She was such a mess that the priest thought she was drunk. Eli asked Hannah in 1 Samuel 1:14, “How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you.” Hannah had a great response. She replied and told him:

“No, my lord. I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for all along, I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.” (1 Samuel 1:15-16 ESV).

It was clear that Hannah did not have it all together, but she still showed up pursuing God. In the middle of her despair, she poured out her soul before the Lord. She didn’t try to show up after she pulled herself together, but she spoke to God in the middle of her anxiety and worry!

In his book, “The Pursuit of God,” A.W. Tozer said, “..church attendance will enlarge our outlook and increase our love for others...but at the bottom of all these things, giving meaning to them, will be the inward habit of beholding God.” Real, relentless hope doesn’t come without an intimate relationship with God. Church is one strategy for building that relationship. I can’t tell you how many times I have dragged myself there, showed up despite my feelings, and God met me there and spoke the right message through the pastor.

After each miscarriage, shame was the first emotion that tried to creep in. Shame attacks a lot of people. The enemy wants to use shame to keep you down, whether it’s a failed job, business venture, or relationship. Not only will shame try to keep you down, but it will also try to keep you isolated. Discouragement, disappointment, and despair will all try to do the same thing to you. Showing up to church is also instrumental in fighting isolation. There is something powerful about being rooted in a local church, finding people to be vulnerable with, and that will pray for and encourage you. If you have a church, make it a mission always to show up every week, not just when you feel like it. If you don’t have a church, you should find one. We might not go very often if we just showed up when we felt like it. But if you show up each week expecting God to speak to your heart and help you build community, He’ll meet you where you’re at.