Hannah, the Name-giver

Hannah is woman of great vibrancy. She will grab a hold of you literally when you come into her presence. She loves having visitors and has such energy. She instantly wants to sit and visit. Hannah's family lives on a main road at the entrance to the village. She seems to know everyone.

A young woman who served on our team had often shared with Hannah. At times, Hannah's attention would ebb and flow. The young woman introduced me to
Hannah before she left so that I could continue to meet with Hannah. At times I have found Hannah distracted as well, but it is hard not to have those moments when their lives are full of such hard work. Other times I would instantly be seated with Hannah close by my side, and she would beg me to teach her. She has heard much Truth from the Word.

When a volunteer team came in 2012, Hannah gave the team their local names. As 2013 came to a close, one of the men from that team returned with a couple of ladies. The man wanted to go greet Hannah and her family. Almost as soon as we entered, Hannah brought benches for us to sit and began begging for a story.

One story lead to another. And another. And another. A young man happened by where we were studying and at first seemed to be disrupting what we doing. Soon he asked if we were forcing what we were sharing. Hannah was quick to defend that it was not force at all but if anyone wanted to learn. We told more stories.

After a time, Hannah needed to get up to begin preparing lunch. As she did so, she made a very clear statement to us that she and others wanted to follow
The Way. Unfortunately, the door was not open again to share as much as we did that day before the team left.

I went back a few weeks later to check on Hannah. She was struggling with some cultural issues regarding marriage. We discussed the passage from
Ephesians 5, which I had previously shared with both her and her husband at separate times in the past. I went on to talk about what God expects and requires of us as women in Titus 2. She said that someone had taken the books I had given her the last time and asked for new books. I gave her new ones and a lady who had sat with us asked for one as well. At one point, her mother in law came beside us, which made me nervous, but the Father gave me the words to speak.

Lift Hannah up as she continues to grow in knowledge and that she will commit fully to the Way of Truth. Lift up others who Hannah continues to influence.