Anna's Ministry

 Anna was not a prominent character in the Bible. The total biblical account of her life only takes up two verses. There is a lot packed in those three verses. Her ministry was amazing. The story of her life is both tragic and triumphant. You can read it in [Luke 2:36-38]. 

Like most young girls she dreamed of marriage one day. We are not given her husband's name. For seven years we believe she lived in marital bliss. Suddenly everything changed. We are not given any details. All we know is that her husband died after seven years. Anna lived another 84 years without him. Think about that. She lived over eight decades as a widow. Over eight decades with crushing grief. Eight decades alone. The Bible does not report that she had any children. She plodded through life without human companions. 

She is identified as a prophetess. This is unusual. We are familiar with prophets. Not so much with prophetesses. We know prophets both heard and spoke for God. It seems reasonable to deduce that Anna also heard from God. She may not have had a large audience to share God's message with, but I am confident that she did hear from God and speak for Him as well. When possible and appropriate I believe she shared those messages with others. 

That is not what drew me to her story. It is what we read next. She did not leave the temple complex serving God night and day with fasting and prayer. [Luke 2:37]

She devoted herself to prayer. She served God night and day in prayer. The word serving means that she offered worship. It was her ministry. When we think about serving God, we think about doing a task for Him. We go on mission, we teach, we cook and serve food, we visit hospitals and many other things like these. We do not often think of prayer as serving God. Prayer as a ministry. She didn't just pray. She prayed and fasted night and day. She didn't leave the temple complex. 

While she was a widow who lost her husband, she wedded herself to God and devoted herself to prayer. The outside world was oblivious to her as she remained singularly focused on time shut up with God. She did this for 84 years. Can you imagine how close she was to Jehovah? All the things that He revealed to her in that span must have been wonderful. One of those things was the coming of Messiah. She thanked God and told others about the coming Messiah. 

What would our walk with the Lord be like if we were as devoted to seeking God as she was. I do not know how she made it financially. I am sure people supported her ministry with private donations. People have to go to work these days. There are bills to pay. There are family responsibilities. I am imagining what serving God more seriously in prayer would look like. Less entertainment. Less television. Less time with other people in lieu of more time in the prayer closet. A life of worship and communion that would enthrall and enrich the soul. Increasingly getting out of step with the culture but keeping in step with Yahweh. 

Anna's ministry was supernatural. Not just in the multitude of answered prayers she assuredly saw in those 84 years. It was supernatural in that she desired God so much. That she did not wallow in her grief and quit yearning for God. Supernatural in its length. Supernatural in focus and self- denial. While none of us can be Anna, I sure wish I could be like her. To devote myself to prayer and worship of God. From that service would flow preaching, teaching, writing, shepherding and leading. It is a service I'm asking God to help me perform. How about you? May we all strive to be more like Anna.