

In the course of time Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. 1 Samuel 1:20
By an act of Congress in 1988, the first Thursday in May was declared as National Day of Prayer. Traditionally the second Sunday in May is observed as Mother’s Day. The two occasions are close together, not only on the calendar but also as to content and intent. Prayer and parenthood are related topics.
Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel, is well known for her prayers both for her petition and her thanksgiving. In the temple she asked God for a son, and God gave her one. After the son was born, Hannah was back in the temple, where she spoke a prayer of thanksgiving as recorded in chapter two of 1 Samuel. It was a prayer that surely served as a model for the Magnificat, the prayer of praise Mary spoke when the angel Gabriel announced that she would be the virgin mother of the promised Christ.
Fervent prayer and faithful motherhood go together like a hand and glove. One can speak of the two topics in the same breath. Hannah and Mary were good mothers, largely because they were diligent in prayer and taught their sons how to pray, one of them, the Son of God, had become a human child. Again, Saint Paul told young Timothy, “I want men [people] everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer” (1 Timothy 2:8). Timothy was able to teach his parishioners how to pray because he himself had learned prayer from his mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois.
Mary’s Son, nailed to a cross as a sacrifice for the sin of the world, died with a prayer on His lips: “Father into Your hands I commit My spirit” (Luke 23:46). He had previously committed His mother to the care of the apostle John. He is our Exemplar on both counts: prayer and parental concern. We follow in His footsteps when we honor father and mother and when we faithfully cultivate the art of prayer.
PRAYER: Dear Lord God, thank You for all the blessings You have given me. Amen.
(Devotions from "With Jesus Every Day" copyright 1997, CPH. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be printed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of Concordia Publishing House. Permission is granted for one-time emailing of this link to a friend. For information on other devotional material, please contact CPH at 800-325-3040 or visit CPH at www.cph.org.)
Today's Bible Readings: 2 Samuel 1-2 Luke 24:36-53
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