Purpose Study Bible 366: You Cannot Outgive God
We started our study of First Samuel talking about the need to give something back to God before He actually gives it to you. Then we saw Hannah do just that, and she praised the Lord for the opportunity to do so. Now we read of God's faithfulness and mercy, for He was certainly mindful of Hannah's faith:
And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord (1 Samuel 2:21).
Hannah went from being barren to being a mother of six. And while her rival's children remain nameless in Scripture, her boy Samuel is still speaking to God's people because of his mother's faith. Hannah could never have imagined the impact Samuel would have when she entrusted him to the Lord, but God had plans for him that went far beyond anything she could have envisioned.
The lesson in this story is simple: you cannot outgive God. When God asks you to surrender something to Him, it's not because He is arbitrary or cruel. It's because He can be trusted with what you give Him, including your purpose, creativity, and future. That doesn't mean He will always give you more of what you surrendered, but it does mean that what you entrust to Him is never wasted.
Where do you need to commit your creative purpose or goals to the Lord before they become a reality? Where is your thinking too limited where your purpose future is concerned? Where do you need to trust God for results that only He can bring instead of depending solely on your own strength and effort?
Hannah had faith and acted on it by entrusting her son to God. She left us a legacy of trust that reminds us that God's plans can extend far beyond anything we imagine. You may not always see the results of your obedience, and they may not come in the form you expect, but you can trust God to be faithful. Give Him your purpose, your creativity, and your future, and then move forward in faith, confident that He knows what to do with what you've entrusted to Him.