The Hidden Power of an Undignified Cry

Hannah was one of two wives of the man Elkanah.

This is simply what’s written, differentiating the two women: “Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children” (1 Sam. 1:2). Hannah desperately wanted a son, but the rival wife, Peninnah, actually tormented Hannah because of her closed womb. For this book, I am not talking about someone desperately wanting a child or desperately desiring some kind of blessing or breakthrough. The object of Hannah’s request is not the focus; it’s Hannah’s desperation for a son that produces a cry.

What cultivated the sound within Hannah? Provocation. She was provoked by the other wife’s fruitfulness. She was provoked by her own barren womb. And then, she was provoked by her husband’s religious wet blanket response.

“Just be satisfied with what you have (or don’t have).” Look at what Hannah’s husband says to her, fully aware of her desire for a son:

“Then Elkanah her husband said to her, ‘Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? And why is your heart grieved? Am I not better to you than ten sons?’” (1 Sam. 1:8).

Religion would love to tell you, “Why the desperation? Why all the contending and pressing and pushing? Why pursue more of God? You have enough. You have the Bible! You have the Holy Spirit! Just cut out all of that intense intercessory desperation stuff and settle down.”

Part of this sounds noble, even true. We do have the Bible, yes. We are filled with the Holy Spirit, correct. But let’s honestly ask ourselves if we are seeing everything the Bible says is available and if we are walking in everything the Holy Spirit has made possible. Hannah’s husband represents the religious spirit that says, “Just settle down; you’ve hit your spiritual ceiling. Anything more is asking too much and going too far. Just be happy and content with what you have!” But what if what we have is not enough? What if what we have is actually living beneath what Jesus made available? It’s disappointing religious responses like this that provoke people to backslide and turn away from the Lord.

What do you do with the sound?

So Hannah arose after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost of the tabernacle of the Lord. And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and wept in anguish (1 Samuel 1:9–10).

History records what happened to Hannah: she received the answer to her prayer—a son, Samuel.

What kind of prayer did Hannah pray?

It was desperate. It was undignified. It was mistaken by the religious establishment of the day for drunkenness (sound familiar, like the Day of Pentecost being mislabeled as drunkenness). In the same way that barrenness provoked Hannah to pray, Hannah’s desperate prayers provoked the spirit of religion to respond through how Eli reacts. This is truly a sign that we are partnering with the sound of Heaven—our groan is coming into agreement with the very groan, or desire, of God Himself.

Groaning prayers will always confront religious spirits and make them uncomfortable.

The priest, Eli, represented the religious establishment of Hannah’s day (unfortunately). As Eli witnessed this kind of prayer, something made him uncomfortable:

“And it happened, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli watched her mouth. Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. There- fore Eli thought she was drunk. So Eli said to her, ‘How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!’” (1 Sam. 1:12–14).

Likewise, the contemporary religious spirit reviews those who pray with intensity, groaning, and travail, and make similar observances as Eli. This is because, like Eli, they live at a distance from the sound from Heaven, the heartbeat of God. When you know the sound of Heaven, as strange or offensive as it may seem, you desire it. However, when you are content wearing the title of priest, (or Christian, or Christian leader, or influencer) but live at a distance from the One you are called to minister before, then God’s unusual ways will continually offend your flesh because you are living from the flesh, not the spirit.

Travailing intercession is intense because it’s agreeing with the sound of Heaven.

Beware. When you enter this dimension of prayer, you stop praying from earth to Heaven, and begin praying from Heaven to earth. Hannah shifted from praying for what she wanted to agreeing with God for what He wanted. Hannah wanted a son, God wanted a prophet. Contemporary culture has falsely emphasized a “genie in a bottle” God who exists to be a cosmic butler and supernatural Santa Claus. Prayer is taught as a formula to get whatever you “want, need or desire from God.” When the objective is purely carnal, it becomes easy to give up, relent, and throw in the prayer towel. But when the vision is for some- thing infinitely greater than getting a breakthrough, we will tarry until we see what God said.

There is a bigger purpose for your breakthrough.

Yes, He is a good Father who gives His children good gifts, but Heaven has a far greater assignment on your breakthrough than you can possibly imagine. Remember, Hannah did not simply give birth to a child—that alone is special. Hannah gave birth to a prophet who would shift times and seasons for spiritually wayward Israel. Her breakthrough broke the spiritual drought over the land, for prior to the emergence of Samuel, “the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation” (1 Sam. 3:1).

Hannah, cry out!

Could it be that is why there is a battle over your breakthrough? It’s not about your answered prayer, just as it was not about Hannah simply getting a son. It was about Israel’s times and seasons being prophetically shifted because a prophet stepped onto the stage who declared the Word of the Lord…and none of his words fell to the ground (see 1 Sam. 3:19). That was the answer to Hannah’s prayer. It’s about you or a loved one receiving a healing miracle, yes, that restores their physical body, but also, becomes a provocative testimony that confronts people in your sphere of influence with a very black and white reality: sickness has been miraculously reversed through prayer in the name of Jesus. If this is true, then what are we going to do with this Jesus? It’s more than just praying your wayward son or daughter back to church so they can sit next to you in a pew, clap their hands during the music, attend youth or young adults meetings, meet a good spouse, land a decent job, maybe go on a missions trip once every so often, and do their best to keep out of trouble. No, the battle over your child that is producing the intercessory groan in you is about a son or daughter that is destined to be a voice of reformation in a world riddled with chaos, deception, and turmoil. It’s time for the roar of Hannah to arise. Even though it was the prophet Samuel who officially ended the time of prophetic drought, it was Hannah’s cry of intercession that first broke through the spiritual silence that defined her day and gave birth to Samuel—to revival.

Hannah, it’s time to cry out!