The earth is groaning. Can you hear it? Addiction, murder and suicide. Depression, anger and bitterness. Epidemics of the heart, mind, soul and body threaten the fabric of God’s creation. Who will lead the next move of God?
The Lord has been speaking to me about a company of women arising with answers in their belly. God has given me an outpouring of revelation about the unique and irreplaceable impact of women who know their purpose and destiny; know how to discern the times and seasons; and are activated, unified and supported in their missions.
I am confident of this: God made no mistake in creating women with the ability to give birth to the answers our world is hungering and thirsting for. He made it so not only would we give birth, but we would also do it in due season, in the fullness of time. God is an on-time God, and He delivers on His promises at the right time—not too early and not too late.
No Limits
God’s promises to deliver, heal, increase, and bring peace and salvation are fulfilled through us in two ways. The first is through natural, physical birth. You could be raising the next generation of world changers. Your children and your children’s children could be the answers. The second way is through the birth of your dream/purpose/destiny. The thing that God has put on your heart to do could be the thing that changes the world: books, businesses, ideas, cures and other innovations.
Some of us are so used to being limited by man that I bet you looked at those two items and began to think of which way God wants to deliver His promised seed through you. But you don’t have to choose which way you will be fruitful. Both are part of the essence of who you are, and women are created to do both with style and grace. The tricky part comes in managing them effectively by discerning and responding to God’s plan within God’s perfect time and being confident in who you are.
If you are insecure in the areas you are called to reproduce, people inside and outside the kingdom of God will cause you to think that you have to choose one or the other, that you cannot have all that God has promised. People are quick to offer their opinions and impose their convictions on what they think your call should look like. It is important for Hannahs to remain focused and confident in God and His promises to them so they are not distracted by the multitude of voices that could lead to doubt. They must be willing to think outside the box of culture and know that in God, there are no limits.
Look at the women who went before you. Some of them gave birth to natural children, spiritual children and culture-shifting movements simultaneously. Some did one or the other. Some you know well. Others are everyday women whose names are not mentioned in history.
Generation after generation, women have been giving birth to people and movements that shake the world. It’s the enemy’s strategy to put limits on women and the value we bring to spaces we occupy. He’s skewed the playing field, made the opposition seem greater than it is and played us against our flesh. But there is a high calling that dwells within women alone. Men were not created to do what women do. But it is not only our biological predisposition to give birth to natural children that enables us to initiate new life. Our biology points to a deep spiritual significance women hold in the earth, the kingdom and eternity.
From babies to businesses, we are carriers of new and glorious things God desires to release in the earth. We carry within us the promise of the next president, pastor or CEO, or of a God-given solution to the problems, issues and tragedies we see in our world every day. There is a deficit in the land, and modern-day Hannahs are the carriers and deliverers of the promise that will fill the gaps and release the power and glory of God in our lives and communities.
Hannah Anointing
One aspect of the Hannah anointing is the ability to harness the essence of what it means to be a woman and break through the enemy’s attempts to shut up the womb. In the beginning, God created woman to be home to generations of people who would fill the earth with the holiness, beauty and glory of God. With man, woman was charged to be fruitful, multiply and subdue the earth (Gen. 1:28).
Another aspect of the Hannah anointing is the spirit of endurance. The Bible says the one who endures to the end will be saved (Matt. 24:13) and will receive what is promised (Heb. 10:36). Modern-day Hannahs will stand on the promises of God and will not be swayed by the criticism of others. They will be relentless in the face of doubt. They will not settle for anything less than the will of God for their lives. The Hannah anointing is the ability to tolerate and hold up under pressure and persecution, never yielding the posture of faith in the promises of God. It is the ability to never lose courage under the pressures of unfulfilled promises.
Hannahs know who they are. They are confident. They are God-assured rather than self-assured. They are persevering, persistent, resilient, humble, prayerful, prophetic and nurturing.
The name “Hannah” means “grace” or “mercy,” though it didn’t seem as if either one was active in Hannah’s life, since we find her in 1 Samuel suffering through a season of barrenness. Hannah’s name was descriptive of the position she took before the Lord while petitioning for His promises to manifest in her life. She bent low in God’s presence in prayer, crying out to Him to give her a son. She sought His favor and implored Him to show mercy.
Hannah prayed, she persistently and relentlessly pursued the promise of God in her life, and she would not let go until the Lord blessed her. She stood in the face of torment, mocking and being misunderstood for the way she prayed. She withstood the temptation to compromise, settle for what she had and give up on her dream of having a son.
Hannah’s story is the prophetic archetype for women everywhere to pray and never lose heart until they see a release of the promises of God, until they see the enemy’s hand lifted off of them, and until they see the spirit of barrenness broken and fruitfulness returned.
Modern-day Hannahs carry within them the answers people are crying out for. In Hannah’s time, the people of Israel were in a spiritual drought and had not heard from God for a long time. Little did Hannah know that while she was praying for a son, God was preparing her to birth the man who would start a prophetic movement that would change the world and who would be the connecting force that would bring God’s people back into fellowship with Him.
Woman of God, the answer to your prayers is coming. Do not relent. Resist discouragement and distraction, and be resilient in the face of setbacks and failure. Do not be afraid to try and try again. The season of barrenness you are experiencing is not what it may appear to be on the surface. God will answer and give you the desires of your heart. You will see the fruit of your labor.
I declare to you today that your season of barrenness is temporary and coming to an end. You will not suffer long. You will not be put to shame. The Lord your God will fight for you. You need only to stand still and see His salvation. Your promised seed is on the way.
Pray this prayer to activate the Hannah anointing over your life:
“Father, thank You for empowering me with the spirit of endurance. I decree that I am strengthened with all power, according to Your glorious might, for all endurance and patience. I take authority over all the spirits of mind control and mind-blinding spirits. I release Your power over my life and my situation. Let this be a day of breakthrough. Let this be a day of Your glory.
“I command every spirit of limitation, spirit of barrenness and lack, and spirit of python to be bound now and to loose my mind, will and emotions in the name of Jesus. I stand against any attempts to sabotage and squeeze the life out of the promise of God over my life. Father, I pray for Your glory and Your grace to be released to me. Heal me and return my hope in the future and the destiny You have outlined for my life. Bring me to a place of breakthrough, for You are the breaker. You have gone before me. I bless You and put You first. I remember Your name, O God. Your name is great and greatly to be praised.
“I decree that every muzzle that’s been on my praise is broken today. I decree that the high praises of God will be in my mouth and the two-edged sword in my hand. I take authority over the spirit of slumber and apathy. God, I pray that You would send Your consuming fire into my life and ignite my heart to praise You and to prophesy of Your power, protection and deliverance, just as Hannah did. Let there be fire in My praise where the devil has tried to take the hallelujah out of my mouth. I will bless the Lord at all times. I shout hallelujah!”
Michelle McClain-Walters is an international speaker, director of prayer ministry at Crusaders Church and an apostolic team leader for the Impact Network.
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