I Samuel 2:1 is often considered the prayer or praise song of Hannah. She begged the Lord for a child and made a vow with the Lord - give me a son and I will leave him at the tabernacle to serve You the remainder of his life. God honored that prayer and Hannah's opening phrase is interesting: "I smile at my enemies because I rejoice in your salvation." Say what? How does that apply?
Culturally, a barren Hebrew woman was considered cursed of the Lord. In ancient times, if a husband had a wife that did not bear him children, he often married another wife. Hannah's husband did likewise and his second wife bore him many children (including sons). While Elkanah, Hannah's husband loved her more, the second wife berated Hannah frequently. At every turn, she maliciously reminded Hannah that she has sons while Hannah had none. These attacks hurt Hannah and drove her to find comfort in the Lord.
Hannah's reflection on the situation provides us a wonderful example to follow -- when berated by our enemies. Turn to God who will comfort you. Her words are valuable in that they reveal a needed perspective. Rather than focusing on the difficulty, we should be seeing the Savior. Anything that happens to us has been approved by the Sovereign God of the Universe to produce something better in us. However, we can choose to allow those events to make us bitter. Hannah did not do so because she ran to God.
When hurt by enemies, offer a smile. Jesus, much later, in the New Testament commands us to love our enemies (Matthew 5:43-48). Loving our enemies is something so outrageous that it will attract the attention of others. They, in turn, will want to know why or how we can do so; and that opens the door to share our faith. The typical response - hating your enemies - is expected of the world, and leaders thrive in the extraordinary.
Be a leader. Be a Christian example. Smile at your enemies and, in doing so, share the love of Jesus.
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