Being Open-Handed

 Therefore, I also have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives, he shall be lent to the LORD.” So, they worshiped the LORD there. 1 Samuel 1:28

One of the most difficult lessons that parents have to learn is to hold their children with open hands because they belong to the Lord. Hannah is the ultimate picture of the “open-handed” parent. She had vowed that she would give her son back to the LORD “all the days of his life” (1 Sam. 1:11). Hannah fulfilled her promise by bringing her son Samuel to live and serve in the tabernacle. The word “lent” used here means to give unconditionally in dedication to the Lord.

Therefore, I also have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the LORD.” So they worshiped the LORD there.

In Luke 2, we see another example of parents giving their child to the Lord when Mary and Joseph present the infant Jesus at the temple in Jerusalem. In doing this, they were not only affirming God’s prior claim on the child’s life, but committing themselves to raise him in God’s ways. We as parents should follow the same example in dedicating our children to the Lord. How God chooses to use them is not for us to decide, but He allows us to partner with Him in directing our children toward His purpose.