The Bible is full of promises and assurances of God’s ability to offload any burden facing His children. These promises and assurances provide tenable reasons why His children are not to worry. Unfortunately, Christians are often little different from unbelievers in dealing with fear and anxiety. In First Samuel 1:20 we find a rationale behind the fear and anxiety of so many Christians regarding their problems, despite serving an omnipotent God and how it can be overcome.
Circumstances surrounding the name Samuel
Hannah, the first wife of Elkanah, an Ephramite, was barren. As a Jewess, childbirth (especially of male children) was more than just giving birth; it was inextricably linked with her societal status (Gen 30:12,13,22-23)) and the value her husband placed on her (Gen 30:19,20). Though uneasy, Hannah learned to meekly accept her fate and probably hoped for the moment that God would take away her reproach (Gen 30:22,23). Unlike Hannah, Elkanah was overcome by his strong desire to perpetuate his name and thus took a second wife, Peninah.
Peninah’s introduction into Elkanah’s family made Hannah’s situation unbearable. She continually ridiculed Hannah, and just her presence made Hannah feel uncomfortable to partake even in the family’s gathering or dinner at Shiloh. But instead of Hannah routinely moaning over her predicament, she took the matter to God. God answered her prayer and gave her a son, whom she named Samuel.
Naming in the Hebrew culture entailed more than just what a person was called; it gave a person his or her identity (see Gen25:26; 32:28; 17:5) often portraying the circumstances surrounding his or her birth (see Gen 35:18, 1Sam 4:21). Hence the name Samuel, ‘asked of the Lord’ might have been given by Hannah to commemorate how God took away her reproach when she sought Him in prayer (see: Ps 34:4,6).
Why the needless pain?
The name ‘Samuel’ thus affirms God’s ability and willingness to answer any true and sincere prayer from His children. The former was a perennial happening even before Samuel was born (see, Gen 25:21) and Hannah could have seized this opportunity earlier (i.e. with similar effort as the later), yet she waited until her situation became unbearable through the heartless taunts of Peninah. Perhaps if Hannah had presented her case to God at its latent stage, God might have answered sooner, and Elkanah’s desire to seek another wife could have been averted. This would have saved her from all the sorrows that accompanied Peninah’s presence in her family.
Like Hannah, many Christians experience needless pain just because they fail to sense the need to seek God’s help at the budding stages of their problems. The attribute of God as “Alpha & Omega” (Rev. 22:13) or as the “Author and Finisher of our faith” (Heb. 12:2) also suggests God’s willingness to be totally involved in any circumstance in which His children find themselves. “It is Christ first and last and always. He is to be with us, not only at the beginning and the end of our course, but at every step of the way” (Ellen White, Steps to Christ page 69). It is always the best to first approach the throne of grace with one’s life challenges, no matter how insignificant they may seem. We don’t know the future, nor the outcome of any difficulty that may come our way; thus laying our challenges first before God is the safest way to secure ourselves from uncertainties (Prov 3:5).
Francis Owusu-Bahanene currently serves as youth director of the South Ridge Seventh-day Adventist Church in Sunyani, Brong Ahafo, Ghana. He is a businessman and entrepreneur, and holds a Bachelor's degree in Integrated Business Studies from the University for Development Studies (UDS) in Ghana.