A Pleasing Aroma To God

Friday, May 16




1 Samuel 1:9-13 (NIV)

“Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his chair by the doorpost of the LORD’s house. In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the LORD, weeping bitterly. And she made a vow, saying, “LORD Almighty, if you will only look on 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.” As she kept on praying to the LORD, Eli observed her mouth. Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk”

Devotion

It was like clockwork.

Hannah would go with her husband to worship and offer sacrifices to the Lord, and year after year her adversary would provoke her till she wept. Peninah, who had children, would harass Hannah, who had none, whenever she went up to the house of the Lord.

This year would be different though. Hannah wouldn’t just offer gifts and sacrifices which “were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper” (Hebrews 9:9). This year she would offer what the Lord truly sought: a prayer of sincere faith and of a true believer, a pleasing aroma to God, one offered in humility and in accordance with the will of God (Proverbs 15:8, John 15:7, James 4, 1 John 5:14).

Just as Hannah’s adversary sought to spiritually ambush her as she went up to the Lord, so does our adversary, Satan, seek to cut in on our race and our walk with the Lord whenever we seek to enter His presence. When the worries and troubles of life creep in, we may divert our path from seeking the kingdom to instead seek after worldly comfort and worldly solutions (Matthew 13:18-22). James, the brother of Jesus, sternly warns against this in James 4, saying “You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives”.

Eli, the high priest at the time, thought that Hannah was drunk (1 Samuel 1:13-14). To the world, true godly prayer and a true godly posture may seem like drunkenness and foolishness: How can one have a life if one does not seek the material or, at the very least, provision? Our great high priest, Jesus, teaches us otherwise in Matthew 6:32-33.

When temptation comes and the enemy tries to divert our focus and even our prayer life back to the world, thanks be to God that “we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin." (Hebrews 4:15) We can take heart and continue running the race with our eyes and prayers fixed on the Lord because we follow the one who has overcome the world (John 16:33). We can seek not worldly gain, but great gain: godliness with contentment (1 Timothy 6:6-10).

Hannah’s prayer for a son was ultimately answered and she named him Samuel, saying “because I asked the Lord for him.” (1 Samuel 1:20) Hannah did not withhold her son from the Lord, even the answer to her prayer and her heart’s desire, but rather dedicated Samuel to God’s purposes. Samuel would go on to anoint David, of whose lineage would be born another son whom God did not withhold, Jesus (Romans 8:32): way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper, light in the darkness! 

Let us therefore rejoice and pray not out of worry (Philippians 4:4-7) but to live according to His Word. Let us pray to see His purpose fulfilled, on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10). As David the anointed cried out to God, may our prayers be set before the Lord like a pleasing aroma and may the lifting up of our hands be like the evening sacrifice (Psalm 141:2).
     
Today’s Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father,
Like Hannah, I come before You not with empty words or rituals, but with a heart full of faith. Teach me to pray prayers that please You, prayers that are honest, surrendered, and aligned with Your will. Cleanse my motives, purify my desires, and lead me to seek Your kingdom above all else. When my heart is weary or provoked by life’s battles, remind me that You hear even the silent cries. Make my prayers a sweet aroma before You. In the Name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Apply It Today

Examine the focus and motive of your prayers. Are you seeking God’s will or your own comfort? Choose one area where you’ve been praying for a breakthrough, whether it’s provision, healing, or restoration, and surrender it back to God like Hannah did. Pray not just for the answer, but for the opportunity to glorify God through it.

Resources

  • Watch this message, “The Power Of Pleasing God”, and boldly walk in obedience to His Word and His desire for a contrite heart.
  • Read Romans 12:1 and reflect on what it means to live a holy life unto the Lord.