Hannah: Trusting God With Your ProblemsSample

Hannah was not understood by her loving husband

Hannah was upset by Peninnah’s meanness and her own hopeless situation. She wept and would not eat. Her husband tried his best to express his love for her, but he did not understand her pain. He asked her, “Why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?” This question makes it clear that he did not understand his wife’s feelings at all.

When we feel sad, it often helps to have the sympathy of others. It helps to talk with someone who has gone through the same thing or who just listens attentively. But if people around us show over and over again that they don’t understand us, or if they come up with solutions that don’t hit the core of our problem, this only increases our loneliness and frustration. Although their words are well-meant, they don’t help.

The book of Job tells us that Job had the same experience with his friends. Utterly frustrated, he exclaimed: “You are like worthless doctors who cannot heal anyone. I wish you would just be quiet. That would be the wisest thing you could do” (Job 13:4-5, ERV).

How about you? Do you feel like your friends and family members understand you? How do you react if they completely miss the point?