The Birthing Season
1 Samuel 1:1-28 (Amplified Bible, Classic Edition)
1 There was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim, of the hill country of Ephraim, named Elkanah son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.
2 He had two wives, one named Hannah and the other named Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.
3 This man went from his city year by year to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh, where Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were the Lord’s priests.
4 When the day came that Elkanah sacrificed, he would give to Peninnah his wife and all her sons and daughters portions [of the sacrificial meat].
5 But to Hannah he gave a double portion, for he loved Hannah, but the Lord had given her no children.
6 [This embarrassed and grieved Hannah] and her rival provoked her greatly to vex her, because the Lord had left her childless.
7 So it was year after year; whenever Hannah went up to the Lord’s house, Peninnah provoked her, so she wept and did not eat.
8 Then Elkanah her husband said to her, Hannah, why do you cry? And why do you not eat? And why are you grieving? Am I not more to you than ten sons?
9 So Hannah rose after they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his seat beside a post of the temple (tent) of the Lord.
10 And [Hannah] was in distress of soul, praying to the Lord and weeping bitterly.
11 She vowed, saying, O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your handmaid and [earnestly] remember, and not forget Your handmaid but will give me a son, I will give him to the Lord all his life; no razor shall touch his head.
12 And as she continued praying before the Lord, Eli noticed her mouth.
13 Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved but her voice was not heard. So Eli thought she was drunk.
14 Eli said to her, How long will you be intoxicated? Put wine away from you.
15 But Hannah answered, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I was pouring out my soul before the Lord.
16 Regard not your handmaid as a wicked woman; for out of my great complaint and bitter provocation I have been speaking.
17 Then Eli said, Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him.
18 Hannah said, Let your handmaid find grace in your sight. So [she] went her way and ate, her countenance no longer sad.
19 The family rose early the next morning, worshiped before the Lord, and returned to their home in Ramah. Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her.
20 Hannah became pregnant and in due time bore a son and named him Samuel [heard of God], Because, she said, I have asked him of the Lord.
21 And Elkanah and all his house went up to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and pay his vow.
22 But Hannah did not go, for she said to her husband, I will not go until the child is weaned, and then I will bring him, that he may appear before the Lord and remain there as long as he lives.
23 Elkanah her husband said to her, Do what seems best to you. Wait until you have weaned him; only may the Lord establish His word. So Hannah remained and nursed her son until she weaned him.
24 When she had weaned him, she took him with her, with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin bottle of wine [to pour over the burnt offering for a sweet odor], and brought Samuel to the Lord’s house in Shiloh. The child was growing.
25 Then they slew the bull, and brought the child to Eli.
26 Hannah said, Oh, my lord! As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here praying to the Lord.
27 For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted my petition made to Him.
28 Therefore I have given him to the Lord; as long as he lives he is given to the Lord. And they worshiped the Lord there.
Isaiah 66:8
Who has heard of such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall a land be born in one day? Or shall a nation be brought forth in a moment? For as soon as Zion was in labor, she brought forth her children.
For months I have felt a burden deep within my spirit. It is difficult to explain. It is not discouragement, and it is not fear. It is a holy burden.
Like Hannah of old, I have carried something before the Lord that I could not fully describe. Hannah said, “For this child I prayed” (1 Samuel 1:27). Before Samuel was ever seen by the nation, he was carried in the heart of a praying woman. Before there was a manifestation, there was travail. Before there was a prophet, there was a burden.
I believe the Lord is speaking to BASH Family Worship Center that we are standing in a birthing season. A baby changes everything. A baby brings joy, responsibility, growth, and a future.
When a family is expecting a child, they begin making room for what is coming. They prepare a place before the child ever arrives. In the same way, God is calling us to prepare room for what He is about to bring into His house.
In Luke 15, Jesus revealed the Father’s heart. One sheep out of one hundred was lost. One coin out of ten was lost. One son out of two was lost. The progression moves ever closer to the Father’s heart until we discover that God’s greatest desire is not merely to recover property but to restore sons and daughters.
The Father watched the horizon, waiting for his son to return. When he saw him a great way off, he ran to meet him. That is the heart of God today. Heaven is looking for sons and daughters to come home.
I do not believe the Lord is merely adding attendance; I believe He is adding family. The vision is bigger than filling seats. The vision is bringing sons and daughters into the Father’s house.
Some are broken. Some are addicted. Some have been wounded by life. Some have wandered far from God. Yet the Father still watches the horizon, longing for their return.
Isaiah declared, “As soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children” (Isaiah 66:8). Travail always precedes birth. Prayer precedes harvest. Tears precede rejoicing. For years we have prayed, worshipped, fasted, believed, and carried the burden. Now I believe we are entering a season of manifestation. The Lord is bringing forth what has been conceived in prayer.
We are not preparing for an event. We are preparing for sons and daughters. We are not waiting upon a crowd. We are waiting for our family. We are not seeking pomp and performance. We are seeking Presence. When His Presence fills the house, the lost come home, the wounded are healed, and the Father receives His children.
Church, get ready. Make room. Prepare your heart. Open your arms. The Father is about to add sons and daughters to His house. We are about to have a baby.