Shepherdess Week Two

Devotions this week seem a bit odd. I’m so used to reading and posting daily, that I feel I am missing something. My thoughts have been less on David this week and more on Hannah and Samuel. Sunday as I was pre-reading for the week, I kept thinking of how Samuel was so given to doing the Lord’s will, I went back to the first chapter of Samuel and read of his beginnings.

Hannah REALLY wanted a child, a boy. She was so full of sorrow about it, she could not bring herself to even utter the words from her mouth as she sought God’s blessing. Once she conceived, she dedicated the child to the Lord and followed through on taking him to the temple. This child was Samuel, who later did the Lord’s will by anointing both Saul and David as the first kings of Israel.
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I asked myself, have I taken the time to dedicate my children to the Lord? Have I prayed specifically that He bless me with the ability to, like Hannah, raise them in a way that ensures they will be committed to doing all He needs to do through their lives, especially when it gets hard? This goes right along with the idea of Shepherdess Rise Up. I have in fact prayed they would long to do His will, but it has been a while. The conviction to get into prayer and possibly even pray over my children is strong, and something I will be doing soon.
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Reading this also reminded me of all the children in the world who may not feel as valued by their parents. I want to pray for them too. They may seem like sheep without shepherds in their lives, on the brink of wandering far away, some seemingly never to “return”. I pray we intercede for those children. I pray men and women come into their lives who would lift them in up prayer, build them up, spend time with them, and most importantly – LOVE them.
I’m looking forward to digging into the story of David even more so. Although, I am also looking at the mistakes Saul made, causing him to no longer be the king. I sense there is much to learn there as well. I will share my revelations Saturday. Until then, be well and Blessings!