Samuel 1There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 He had two wives; one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.

3 Year after year this man went up from his town to worship and sacrifice to the LORD Almighty at Shiloh, where Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were priests of the LORD. 4 Whenever the day came for Elkanah to sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters.

5 But to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and the LORD had closed her womb. 6 And because the LORD had closed her womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her. 7 This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the LORD, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat.

8 Elkanah her husband would say to her, “Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?” 9 Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the LORD’s temple.

10 In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the LORD. 11 And she made a vow, saying, “O LORD Almighty, if you will only look upon your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the LORD for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head.”

The GiftI Samuel 1-7

Gifts can be interesting, fun or meaningful

No strings attachedSome gifts are life changingThe best gifts are relational

Engagement ring

Elkanah and HannahHannah has no children

Eli the priest and his two sons Hophni and Phinehas

Hannah is in anguish praying to the Lord “in her heart” and

Eli thinks she is drunk

Samuel 116 Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.” 17 Eli answered, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.”

Samuel is born to HannahWhen he is weaned she takes him to

the templeHophni and Phinehas are scoundrels,

disrespectful, and sexual predatorsThey do not listen to anyone

Samuel 212 Eli’s sons were wicked men; they had no regard for the LORD.

A prophet comes to tell Eli that his sons are so out of control they will

die on the same daySamuel hears the voice of the Lord

Samuel 3Then Eli realized that the LORD was calling the boy. 9 So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’ ” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

Samuel 311 And the LORD said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle.

Israel finds itself at war with the Philistines

The men of Israel decide to bring the ark of the covenant

They lose the battle and the ark of the covenant to the Philistines

That day Hophni and Phinehas dieEli dies on hearing news of the arkSamuel, the prophet, becomes the

new spiritual leader

The ark of the covenant cause too many problems for the Philistines

and they return it to Israel…With an offering!

Samuel 63 They answered, “If you return the ark of the god of Israel, do not send it away empty, but by all means send a guilt offering to him. Then you will be healed, and you will know why his hand has not been lifted from you.”

When the Philistines attack the people of Israel again…

They are fearfulSamuel tells them they must repent

Samuel 73 And Samuel said to the whole house of Israel, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the LORD and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”

Samuel 76 …On that day they fasted and there they confessed, “We have sinned against the LORD.” And Samuel was leader of Israel at Mizpah.

Samuel 713 So the Philistines were subdued and did not invade Israelite territory again. Throughout Samuel’s lifetime, the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines.

14 …And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.

The giftHannah’s son Samuel

The priesthood Hophni and Phinehas were born to

The gift has to be accepted“Here I am”

Disrespect and contempt

The resultFailure and loss

A changing of the guardA new relationship

Repentance, confession and offering

Putting it all togetherIdentify our gift and use it!

If we neglect, disrespect or disregard our gift -- one day it may be gone

When we take things for granted the gift is sometimes taken awaySometimes we are replaced

Putting it all togetherExpect something, listen and prepare

We often cannot see or hear God because we are not paying attention

“Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening”

“Here I am”

Putting it all togetherWe are a people of faith; not of good-

luck charmsThe ark of the covenant, the cross, the bible... These things are not our faith!We are in a relationship and it requires

emotion, connection and respect

Seek the giftRespect the gift and use it

Don’t treat it like a good luck charmBecause the best gifts are relational

Our greatest gift is God

We are the Federated Church.Our Mission is to…

Seek Christ, Serve Christ and Share Christ.