how to silence the voices of despair
- Keiko Yamada
- Apr 21
- 2 min read
In 1 Samuel chapter 1, we read about a woman named Hannah who longed to have a child. However, she suffered from infertility, and to make matters worse, she was tormented by Peninnah, her husband's other wife. As a result, she was driven even further into despair.
In our own lives, don't we sometimes encounter a "Peninnah"—someone or something that attacks our hopes and expectations? This "Peninnah" might be a specific person's words or actions, or perhaps a situation that we cannot change no matter how much we groan or cry out.
But we don’t have to bottle up our fears, sadness, or doubts deep inside our hearts. Just like Hannah did, we can pour them out to God—anytime, anywhere. The God of the Bible not only receives all of it with open arms, but also transforms our hearts so that we are ready to receive the very best that God wants to give us.
This artwork portrays how that love of God is being poured into our hearts.
“This hope will not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”— Romans 5:5 (CSB)
reflection questions using the artwork inspired by romans 5:5:
This dry trunk on the left symbolize our despair. Who or what is the "Peninnah" in your life right now? What kind of thirst or longing is being stirred up by that "Peninnah"?
If you find yourself hesitating to pour out all your thoughts and feelings before God just as they are, why do you think that is? What do you think Jesus would say in response to that?
Pouring of His love and our ascending hope through that is expressed through the movement of water being pouring out to both direction - toward the ground and toward the heaven. If you were truly able to believe from the depths of your heart that God’s love—revealed on the cross and still being poured out through the risen Jesus Christ—is being poured into your heart, what do you think would change?
Have you noticed that from an death drunk there is a cross growing, blossoming with flowers? Our faith is based on His work of resurrection, and our trust in Him will never be in vain. How can we trust Him today, and by doing so rest in His complete grace?
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