Blessings: 1 Samuel 1:1-8
How we handle God’s blessing deeply illustrates our character within. From whom much is given, much will be required. Those whom God blesses are called to use their blessing for good.
Before the days of the Hebrew kings, a simple Levite named Elkanah lived in the hill country of Ephraim. He seemed like a dutiful man. Being a Levite, he went yearly to perform his service at the altar of the Lord at Shiloh. He wasn’t a priest, so when he went, he was a helper. When he helped, he received a portion of the daily sacrifices as allotted in the Hebrew Law.
While Elkanah may have been simple, his life was not. Elkanah had two wives. The first wife’s name was Hannah, and Hannah was barren. Most likely, when Hannah couldn’t produce children, Elkanah married another woman, named Peninnah. Peninnah produced children for Elkanah.
At this point, we see human ugliness rear its evil head. Peninnah appears to be the blessed one. She had all the children. When Elkanah sacrificed, her side of the family received most of the blessing because there were more of them. She had everything; she should be happy! Unfortunately, Peninnah does not have a strong character. Although blessed with many children, she took her blessing and turned it into Hannah’s turmoil. The Bible calls Peninnah Hannah’s rival, noting Peninnah grievously irritated Hannah because of her condition.
This demonstrates a significant problem with blessing a human being. You never know how a blessed person will respond until after they are blessed. Peninnah had two choices. She could have received her blessing humbly and tried to find a way to include Hannah in her blessing or she could hold her blessing over Hannah. Peninnah could have tried to use her blessing to bless others, or she could use her blessing as proof of her own superiority. The Bible teaches that Peninnah took pleasure in using her blessing to lower Hannah’s position. Peninnah’s character lies fully exposed.
Returning to Elkanah, his character is displayed. Even though he tries to show his love for Hannah by giving her a double portion of his own blessing, his second marriage indicates his love for producing an heir is more important to him than his love for his own wife. He tries to appease Hannah with gifts to demonstrate her significance, but he cannot make up for his choice to bring a fertile second woman into the picture in the first place.
God brings blessing into all our lives. Some are blessed more; others are blessed less. Our character is not shown by the quantity of blessings we receive. Our character is shown by how our blessings affect us. Do we employ our blessings to make the lives of others better? Do we assume our blessings demonstrate our own superiority? How we handle God’s blessing deeply illustrates our character within.
