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"A SONG OF THANKSGIVING""And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the LORD, mine horn is exalted in the LORD: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.There is none holy as the LORD: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God." (1 Samuel 2:1-2)In the opening chapter of 1st Samuel, we learn that a godly woman by the name of Hannah was barren. Her husband, who went by the handle of Elkanah. had another wife, Peninnah, who tormented and teased Hannah. In those days, to be barren was considered to be a curse from God. Before I continue on here, after studying this account for many years, I haven't made up my mind about this guy Elkanah, who was living the life of Riley with 2 wives. Seems to me that with 2 women, he was pretty much the center of attention around the house with a couple gals clamoring for his affection. Now folks, no matter how you slice it, that's going to spell trouble, and it surely did, didn't it?Well, while Hannah was pouring out her heart to God in anguish at the tabernacle, Eli the priest thought she was drunk (1 Samuel 1:12-13). He rebuked her for it but then heard her explanation (vs.14-16). He asked the Lord to grant her request (v.17). She promised to give the child back to the Lord (v.11). When the child was born, she named him Samuel (v.20). Following Samuel's birth, Hannah sang her prayer of thanksgiving found in 1 Samuel 2, and that prayer incudes the above verse which I posted.You and I can know that, even though we are mere mortals and miniatures of might in this vast universe, the Almighty Creator and Sustainer of all things hears our prayers when we, like Hannah, pour our hearts out to Him. Yes, God heard the pangs of her heart, and it moved Him to answer her. He owes us nothing and we owe Him everything. Yet, He hears our prayers and is concerned with our pain. Oh, how thankful we should be for our gracious prayer hearing and prayer answering God we serve!We hear Hannah declaring God to be uniquely Holy with her words, "There is none holy as the LORD," and how very true that is! He is the epitome of holiness. We were clothed with the righteousness of Christ when we were born again and thereby were made holy in God's sight. Yes, He is uniquely Holy! He has always been Holy even before time, as we know it, began. But we became holy at a point in time when we trusted Christ for salvation.God is always the same and therefore He is our Rock. No phony little worthless god concerns itself with men and women with love and mercy like our God. No other god is forever perfect like our God. No other god brings peace to our troubled souls like our God. Yes, our God is the Rock of Ages and He's more than worthy of our praise and thanksgivings.Friends, the answer to Hannah's prayer filled her with an awareness of gratitude for the wonderful God she served. Likewise, the answers to our prayers should continually fill us with songs of thanksgiving as well.