A Woman After God’s Own Heart

G’day Gymea,

I hope you’ve got plenty to be thankful for this week.

This week we begin a brand-new series in 1 Samuel, and our opening sermon is titled “A Woman After God’s Own Heart.” 

Most people know that David is described as “a man after God’s own heart,” but before we ever meet David in 1 Samuel, we meet Hannah - a woman whose heart is marked by the same deep trust in God. In the middle of sorrow, disappointment, and years of unanswered prayer, Hannah turns to the Lord with honesty, humility, and faith. While Israel around her is drifting spiritually, Hannah stands out as someone whose heart is wholly directed toward God. In that sense, she is a fitting beginning to a book that is searching for true godly leadership.

As we begin this journey through 1 Samuel, we’ll see that Israel is crying out for a king after God’s own heart - but first God shows us what that kind of heart looks like in Hannah. Before David the king appears, Hannah models the humble dependence, faithful prayer, and wholehearted trust that God delights in. Her story sets the tone for the whole book: while human beings look for strength, status, and outward success, God is looking at the heart. It is through Hannah’s faith that God raises up Samuel, the prophet who will one day anoint David, the man after God’s own heart. So this Sunday we begin where God begins: with a faithful woman whose life shows us the kind of heart God honours.