Hannah, a woman with a lose grip

This past week I have read the story of Hannah but I wasn't prepared for the conviction I would feel. We are familiar with her story, it is one of faith and a willingness to give back what God gave her, but there was much more to her story, something I wasn't prepared for. I read her prayer of desperation, her cry of despair and her depression. In her deepest moment of agony she went to the One who could heal all her wounds and who would hear her cry. While these are amazing truths from her story they are not my main focus. 
As I read deeper into her story, and tried to place myself in her position, I thought of how willing she was to let go of what she desired most. She longed to be a mother, to remove the title of barren from her life, but what is interesting is that she was willing to give back this precious child to the Lord. Hannah was a woman who understood the importance of having a light grip in this life. She asked God for a son, a son she was willing to have for a short season, a son she promised would serve Him all of his life. I find that amazing. Honestly, I would have wanted to keep him for myself, not lose him after waiting for so long. But not Hannah, she had a light grip of the things of life and a tight grip on the Giver of life. She teaches us that we are to hold the things of earth lightly but cling tightly to our God.
Another truth about Hannah was her ability to enjoy the moment. When Samuel was born she knew her time would be limited with him. Being transparent with you, I would have probably been caught up on what was to come and missed what was. She knew that time was short but instead of letting it consume her thoughts, she chose to embrace today. She relished every moment she had with her little answer to prayer. Sometimes it is easy to get caught up in what's coming and forget to enjoy the present. We are to embrace the now and take pleasure in the season we are in currently. The only future event that is to be in our minds is the coming of our Lord because it helps us stay focused. 
The last truth from Hannah's life is to have no excuses. Here was a woman who had just received all that she ever wanted, a son. She had wept, endured cruel remarks from others about her obvious lack and suffered a soul crushed by disappointments. When her husband comes to her and tells her they are going up to do the yearly sacrifice she simply states that she will not go until the child is weaned. Once little Samuel was weaned she brought him to the temple and left him to serve the Lord. Human nature wants to come up with an excuse to delay fulfilling of promises that we have made, we want to find a reason to prolong our side of the deal. But not Hannah, she weaned Samuel and took him without delay to fulfill her vow to God. She was a woman of integrity and a great example to her son of the importance of keeping a promise made to God.
These truths were very convicting to me and have been in my mind all week. This world is not my home and the things within are only temporal. I truly admire Hannah, a woman who understood that a light grip was necessary for this world. May I be like her and hold loosely the things of earth but tightly to my God.