“She [Hannah] was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. And she vowed a vow and said, ‘O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”

If Hannah had not endured years of life with a barren womb, would she have made such a vow? Would she have had such a change of heart apart from her great struggle with barrenness? Possibly, but It certainly seems quite unlikely.

And so change for us oftentimes comes through our being backed into a corner, so to speak. It comes through desperation. Radical, life-altering decisions are often made out of great longing, as we really our great need for change. I, personally, don’t really like it this way, but it seems to be a normal course for learning and living well.

Hannah’s struggle with barrenness led her to give her first male child to the Lord–a male child who would grow up to be the leader of Israel. Though our struggle might not lead to such a radical step, the course of change might seem quite radical to us. And because the Lord loves us, He might ordain a great deal of struggle for us until we make that radical call. Until we make the change that is good for us and that will bring glory to Him.