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May 12, 2025 27 mins

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Three women share powerful stories connecting their motherhood journeys to the biblical account of Hannah, exploring themes of sacrifice, faith, and divine intervention across different life circumstances.

• Prayer as the first response to parental challenges, even for those who don't yet know God
• Hannah's extraordinary sacrifice of giving her only son back to God after years of barrenness 
• A mother's testimony of God closing a false DFS case in 30 days instead of 6 months
• How God works powerfully in the lives of both believers and non-believers
• A premature birth at 31 weeks becoming "for greater glory" by reconciling family relationships
• The legacy of unshakable faith passed from mothers to daughters


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Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're going to always be on your knees, praying
for the situation, praying forthe child, praying for the
protection and, you know, makingsure that you stand in
alignment with him, and even forthose in the world that don't
know God, they know to call outto someone to help them in that
time of need, even if they justsay, oh Lord, but they're not

(00:21):
realizing you're calling, hehears you.
I thank you, kimmy, for sayingthat, because that's the thing
about it that we don't evenrealize, even when we say, oh
lord, my back hurts.

Speaker 3 (00:33):
There you come, amen just for those simple things
amen, amen, amen and amen.
All right, my second woman.
I had to really wrestle withthis one, but I love Hannah
y'all, because Kimmy touched onprayer and Lakeisha just touched
on prayer, so I'm like, ok, ok,it's aligning, it's aligning.

(00:54):
Hannah.
Her name means grace, is themother of Samuel and one of the
wives of the Elkanah.
So first of all, let's just sayshe was the first wife, ok.
And then Peninnah came in, ok.
Well, nobody tells me to begracious, show favor, pity to
show favor, to be gracious.
So it just, it just really isrepetition.

(01:14):
Repetition in the definition ofher name.
It also says to be shownconsideration, to seek favor, to
implore favor.
She was loathed, right, she wasloathed by the other woman who
came into the picture after herbecause she couldn't have no
children at that time.
But what I love about HannahHannah had a disposition of

(01:41):
humility, she had a dispositionof trust, she had a disposition
of faith far beyond her owncomprehension and far beyond our
own, because when that ladywent into the temple and she got
on her knees and she prayed andshe said, god, if you give me a

(02:03):
man child, no razor will cometo his head, he won't drink wine
and I give him back to you.

Speaker 1 (02:11):
I was hoping and praying that she was going to
mention him, and the reason whyshe resonates in my soul is
because, like you said, it washer poise, her consistency to
stay faithful, no matter whatshe went to that temple.
I'm going to bring my childback to you to be able to take,
and I commend her graciouslybecause not only she made her

(02:39):
promise and she fulfilled herpromise back to the Lord, but
she had to stand back and watchhim through that process.
That's sacrifice, that brings aforetelling of the cross of
Jesus, and that's what I sawwhen I kept reading her story
over and over again.
I'm like, okay, lord, I see howyou're connecting the dots

(03:02):
because you know, in the Churchof Christ we connect the dots.
So I see how we connect thedots because I'm like you're
foreshadowing for what is tocome, because you have to sit
back and give up your onlybegotten son for us.
And so she had to sit back andwatch him from afar after he was

(03:23):
nourished and he was nursed andhad to give him back.
And but she fulfilled herpromise, no hesitation, like
Christ, no, I mean.
And she still what she made.
I'm sorry, please forgive me ifI misquote this.
I'm not for sure what cloththat she made every year, but
she was able to give um thatparticular item and that's why I

(03:48):
was like, oh my gosh, thesacrifice, the dedication.
But I can only imagine hertears going home when you had to
leave.
Or you saw him in passing andum, and you're just like.
That's for me was like it hitshome in a lot of ways and I I'm
going to share this story.
So what happened to me was withmy son was that they said in his

(04:10):
meconium he had a bowelmovement.
When I had it and they couldn'ttell.
They was like, oh, you're doingdrugs.
Well, people know me that Idon't listen around with
anything like that, like that.
But they was in the days he hadto stay at the hospital.
When I was released he stillhad to stay there four or five
more days Now.
Eight pounds, three and a halfounces.

(04:31):
They told me that, 21 and ahalf inches long, that he was
considered a drug baby.
He was considered yes, he wasconsidered, and they had opened
up a whole case.
On the last day they let mecome up there and stay the night
and then they went aheadbecause I still had to come up
there every single day tonursing.

(04:52):
So still, I had to.
So I didn't get the moments,like other mothers, to come and
have the baby in the incubator,in the room and being able to
touch and feel for those severaldays.
I didn't get that opportunity.
They stripped me away from that.
The world stripped me away fromthat.
But God and I say but God,because the next turn of events

(05:12):
was they.
The hospital had to do their duediligence because it was
considered drug related.
Dfs was involved.
Dfs was involved so soon at thetime I was married.
They had waited till my husbandwent down to get the car
together and making sure that hehad the car seat and all of
that.
They decided to come into theroom where I was at and told me

(05:35):
that DFS had been called andthat they opened up a child case
on me.
I just boohooed and criedbecause I didn't know, because I
don't know the system.
I don't know the system.
I don't know the world oranything like that.
Mind you, I'm 20 years old andmy husband's not in the room.
I'm in here by myself withthese people telling me that you

(05:56):
know that we have opened up acase.
I don't know what the next stepis going to look like if
they're going to permanentlytake my son away from me.
I don't know the laws and thelegalities of all of that.
So I'm on the phone.
First, the guy I'm doing iscalling my mother and saying mom
, I need you to come up to thehospital because I think they're

(06:16):
going to take my baby away fromme and I need somebody just in
case if they take my child fromme, from the system, I need
somebody from our home or ourfamily to make sure that he's
going to be okay.
And then we have to do someadoption plans because I don't
know what the legalities ofthings were, that they were
going to take my baby away fromme.

(06:37):
So she came expeditiously, evenbefore my husband came up to
steps and I told him like hey,this is what's happening.
You know I don't do drugs, butthis is the situation.
I don't know if they crossedthe door because there was
another baby's name with thesame last name and similar and
all of this.
All I know is that they openedup a DFS case and that I was

(07:00):
going home with the situationand that we have now the system
in our business and so we start,he and I both start playing the
blame game.
Who did it?
You did it, things of thatnature.
So it's friction causing withinthe marriage.
And then all I can say is butGod.

(07:20):
Because when we got home and DFScame a little later, they
looked around the room and theysaw all the love because we had
bought, started shopping.
They said any cases they've hadwith a crack mother.
They didn't have anything.
They was on a mattress or theydidn't have this.
They saw nothing but love,teddy bears, the room was

(07:43):
decorated, clothes from zero totwo years old.
We had everything because ofthe love that everybody had
Donated and put in time and whatwe worked hard for to be
prepared for this child, becausewe already went through, like I
told you, the abortion part,same father.
Now we're growing up, we'regrown and now here we are and

(08:06):
going through this situation wasa test for us.
It was supposed to be six monthsthat I had to go through this
process of DFS coming to visitmy home every month, but God
closed it in 30 days at last.
And that's why I said but God,because the caseworker saw
nothing but love.

(08:27):
She saw my family showing up.
It was nothing but the love ofGod.
He said I'm going to make thissituation where you're going to
have not only your child, butI'm going to get the glory,
because the glory was that hewas able to shut that case down
where they thought that they wasgoing to get another.
I'm sorry to say that theythought they were going to get

(08:49):
another Black mom to be able tohave to go through this
situation or be classified as acrack mother, and that was not
the case.
I was not going to be astatistic and he was on my side.
I haven't even came to the Lordyet.
I have not been baptized.
I had not learned Jesus Because, remember, in my old podcast

(09:10):
with you guys, I said I didn'tknow.
I knew God, but I didn't knowJesus.
So I hadn't met Jesus yet.
I met God and God met me and hetold me I'm changing all of
this.
He tore it up and he said neveragain.
And so I thank God for thisparticular time to be able to
share this part of understandingwhat true motherhood and what

(09:33):
Hannah had to go through, fromseeing the far away and how he
turned it around.
So that's why I said I canrelate to her because of my
experience.

Speaker 3 (09:45):
Amen.
That's powerful, sis.
Thank you for sharing that,because, again, there are many
women who go through stuff.
They don't know who to turn to.
They don't know you know whatto do, and you weren't even in
the body yet, right?
But God needed you to see hishand, and that's the thing I'm
going to say.
This, say this I need us to stoptelling people that God doesn't

(10:10):
work in the life ofnon-believers, because if he's
trying to get them, he's goingto do something to show his hand
.
Ok, that's God.
God will show a non-Christianwho he is, just to get their
attention, to get into arelationship with him.
And that's that account rightthere that you just shared.

(10:33):
Is God letting you know?
I did this for you.
Now, what are you going to dofor me?
Are you going to give your lifeto me?
And it is powerful, right,because that's what Hannah
displayed and it gave her babyat that time, the only one she
had, the only one.

(10:55):
She didn't have no other one,but she gave him to God.
That's trust, that's faith,that's honor to the Heavenly
Father.
Go ahead, kimmy.

Speaker 2 (11:15):
Honey, oh, sister Lakeisha, my God, I didn't know
whether I was going to cry orjust shout, because that was my
God.
And to know that youencountered that outside of God.
Right, because for some of uswho have been raised in the
church and you know you're toldtrust God, trust God, put your

(11:37):
faith in God.
God is an on-time God.
He don't come when you won't,but he right on time, and all
those cliches sound so greatuntil it has to be implemented.
But then here it is.
You may not have even heardthat anymore.
I heard that before, rather andto know that you encountered
that, my heart shattered and Iencountered a similar situation,

(12:01):
not so much as them goingthrough the hospital insinuating
that you did something wrongduring your pregnancy, but for
me it was my son being born at31 weeks and three days, and so,
in essence, he was two monthsearly, two pounds, 13 ounces at

(12:22):
birth.
That's my miracle baby and it'sjust like you said, as a mother
.
You can definitely tap intoHannah's emotions, because for
me it was praying nonstop, justlike Hannah, praying to the
point that he thought that shewas drunken, and I prayed, and I
prayed and I kept asking God,god, just give me 37 weeks.

(12:45):
God, give me 37 weeks.
And I don't know what Hannah'sprayer was, but I just was
praying to God to sustain thelife of my baby, and every
Sunday, and whether I waspregnant or not, I was in
worship.
So I think it's such a richblessing on this call that we
have your story, where youencountered it as a mother and

(13:06):
you had not come into, you know,that true relationship with God
and meeting Christ.
But then here I am, I've beenraised in the church and I'm
there every Sunday and Wednesdayand you know, abstaining and
keeping myself to you know, tomarriage, to have a child and
all this good stuff.
And then here comes my test.

(13:27):
And so I believe that it's abeautiful thing for even our
listeners to see that the testwill come whether you are in the
body or if you're outside, andthe truth, the consensus, is
that you need God either way.
And so for me it was prayingand praying, and praying that my
baby would make it full turn.

(13:50):
But then I was also uttering,and it was ignorance at first.
And I call it ignorance because, like I said, sometimes we want
God and we expect God to showup how we tell him to, but he's
such a sovereign God that wedon't get to make that call.
And so he was my first childand I was going to maternal

(14:12):
fetal medicine appointmentsevery week.
They were monitoring him.
My cervix began to prematurelydilate when I was probably about
in my fifth month and so, justto speed, you know, fast forward
in the midst of my prayer thathe would be full term and I was
asking for 37 weeks and Ieverything that I looked in and

(14:33):
said 37, I was correlating thatto God just giving me a sign.
But then there was somethingelse that my mouth was uttering
that I didn't give credence toand I said for greater glory.
Every time I walked down thosehalls and that hospital at the
maternal fetal medicine, I keptsaying for greater glory.
Every time I walked down thosehalls in that hospital at the
maternal fetal medicine, I keptsaying for a greater glory.
And that's what God held andhinged.

(14:55):
My whole pregnancy andeverything I went through was
for greater glory.
And I spoke it out my mouth.
But in my heart and in mycarnal mind I still wanted God
to allow my baby to be 37 weeksand three days.
But that's not what happened.
And so he was my miracle babyand he was at 31 weeks and three
days.
I wanted 37.

(15:17):
And so God didn't give me whatI wanted, but he sure, god, gave
me what I needed.
And so I think, and just likeyou said, in looking at Hannah's
story and knowing, and Ithought about even the setting
that the Bible painted about,you know the wives and the
husband, and they were allaround and they're eating and
everybody just in and theyparlay.

(15:37):
You know everything is rightwith them, but she couldn't even
eat, and so she still the wayand she went before God.
And see, I know that as mothers, if we don't know nothing else,
we stay before God for ourbabies and for the cares of our
heart.
And so I think that Hannah andI'm glad, like you said, that
Agni chose Hannah, because aswomen, even if you're not a

(16:02):
mother, you're going to findyourself in a place where you're
desiring, you're wantingsomething of God, and it seems
like God has just taken hispreciousiring.
You're wanting something of Godand God, it seems like God has
just taken his precious time,but he is so masterful, and I
always say that God is anintentional God and so when God
moves, he intends to move inthat moment and in that season,

(16:23):
and it's never just for us, it'snever just what we asked God
for, because, as I stated out mymouth for greater glory, at
that time I was estranged frommy dad and when that happened,
and if I had my baby full termand I would have just had my
little bouncing baby boy.
But that's not what Godintended.

(16:44):
And see, my lips said forgreater glory.
So what did God do?
God used that pregnancy thatturned high risk, that I kept
saying and trying to forge asmuch faith as I could to believe
and trust that I wanted himfull term.
But God said no, because yougot some broken pieces that you
need to fix.
And so God mended myrelationship with my dad.

(17:05):
My dad was sleeping in thehospital with me and so here it
comes they took him by emergencyC-section and honey who was in
that OR room with me?
None other than my daddy andAbba father.
And so I praise God forHannah's story and I praise God
for even my story and your storythat we can just touch our

(17:26):
listeners.
To understand on either side,you need God.

Speaker 3 (17:31):
What I love about Hannah's story is this Whatever
we ask God for, are we askinghim for it for our pleasures or
are we asking him for it for hiswill?
At that time, no one, god wasnot speaking to anyone.
God was silent around that time.
The prophets whoever was therethem judges because they was

(17:56):
doing everything that felt goodin their sight.
So God said well, since I wantto do what's in y'all's sight, I
ain't talking, no more.
And Hannah prayed a prayer Lord, if you bless me with a son, I
will give him back to you.
And when God calls him, that'sthe first time God spoke.

(18:17):
Y'all that blew my mind becauseI'm like that hasn't been
silent, they haven't beenhearing from him.
But here it is, this little boywho's sleeping in the same room
with the ark.
Here's God calling Samuel.
Samuel.

(18:38):
This is a mother that wentthrough hardship with another
woman who was literallytormenting her, talking about
her, treating her like whatever.
You give me a son, god, I givehim back to you.
But let me say this to ouraudience You're praying for

(18:59):
something from God.
How is it going to benefit thekingdom?
Whatever you're asking God for,how is it going to benefit the
kingdom of God.
Who will benefit from whatyou're asking God for?
What soul will be saved by whatyou're asking God for?

(19:20):
Because Samuel, from the momentGod called his name to his
death, even though he had somerascal son, served God till his
death.
So the question remains you'repraying, you're asking God who's
going to benefit from it?
Because when I look at Hannah,a baby, he was used by God for a

(19:46):
greater glory.
As a matter of fact, heanointed two kings Okay, two
kings.
He was used by the Lord.
So, sisters, question If youcan think back in time, what was
your greatest example ofmotherhood?
Did you imitate what they didor did you try your best not to

(20:10):
repeat their mistake?

Speaker 1 (20:12):
I'm going to say yes, it's my mother and my grandma.
There were two, because theywere both part of my race.
I will start with the elder,with my grandmother, because she
was the one who introduced meto the body.
She exposed me and plantedseeds when I was younger, and so
then I.

(20:33):
That's how I learned about thechurch of Christ and
understanding God, how he playsa role in my life and her
raising 14 children 10 girls, 4boys and my mom being the baby
girl.
I understood the seed lineBecause what she instilled in my

(20:53):
mom, my mom turned around andwas so much like her.
I imitated my mom to a certaindegree.
Um and so when I even, you know,look back at my mom's life and,
um, she'll be 68 this year, andI look at her and I'm like, wow

(21:14):
, so much, so many things that Ilook at that we're alike, but
there's so many things thatwe're different.
But a lot of things I imitatethe way she moved, because she
always told me I'm teaching youthese things because one day
you're going to be a wife, oneday you're going to be a mother,
and I want to prepare you forthose, even if they were simple
things, whether it was washingthe dishes, learning how to cook

(21:35):
certain meals One day God'sgoing to bless you to be a
mother and somebody's wife.
So you need to be prepared forthese things to come.
And again, I'm still prayingand hoping, because she's not.
She's still open to having herheart break and we do Bible

(21:57):
studies together to pray thatone day she comes to the Lord.
But I'm saying this in theinterim is that she set the
example and the foundation andalso for me to understand true
love from, because my mom anddad they grew up, you know,
across the street from eachother and my mom was with my dad

(22:17):
until death.
Do us part.
That was the only man she knewand when he passed away in 2018,
they were still that's who shewas with.
That's who she said.
I'm not going any further andit goes back to similar to the
conversation that we had earlier, but it was the same thing with
my grandmother.
To go back to that, mygrandfather was a slave.

(22:38):
He was born in 1900.
He died in 1986.
And when she died she was bornin 1922.
So 22 years different apart,but when he died she stayed with
that same man until death.
Do us part?

Speaker 2 (22:55):
So that's where I, who I imitate it's the loyalty
in the relationship, the loyaltyto my God, to my Jesus mom in

(23:15):
some ways mirror Hannah.
My mom has a humility about herthat confuses me sometimes, to
be honest, but she just has thatspirit of just give it to God
and I'm thankful for thatbecause sometimes that is me
right.

(23:35):
But I'm not the passive, that'snot my personality, that's not
my characteristic trait and soand God is still working, praise
God.
But watching my mother, youknow, take care of the home,
watching my mother nurture herfour children, being that baby
of 14, that was kind of almosttreated like an outcast but God

(24:03):
had it to where she's able toreach back and to help her
siblings and help family whoneeds help, with a very selfless
heart.
And so I can't say that I tookpointers or things like that
when I was married and thingslike that, but my mom has always
been a woman of wisdom.

(24:25):
One thing I have seen, even at ayoung age and it's funny
because my dad's company, theyown fleet and so at a certain
point they would sell the fleetto the immediate family and my
mom's faith and just I felt tome her connection with God.
She can truly ask those thingsthat are not so and are not

(24:48):
supposed to be so, not supposedto be done, and it's going to
manifest.
And I know it's nobody but God,and she gives God that glory.
And so you know, they wereselling that car and my dad was
like no, linda, you ain't goingto be able to get that car.
And mama said God going to giveme that car for $5,500.

(25:10):
And even he was astonished andjust flabbergasted when he came
back and told her sure, indeed,they honored that price.
And so I've learned so much inthat regard as far as a forged
faith.
But then there are componentsthat I don't repeat, and I think
sometimes it's even where Idon't want to repeat it, but

(25:32):
then I find myself because it'salmost kind of innate.
So but I am thankful, and I'mgrateful for the faith component
, because if there is nothingelse that she can give me or
that she's been that example of,is faith, unmovable, unshakable
, undoubting faith to God.
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