Thought I’d repost this as Hannah has been on my mind again 🙂
The following is excerpted from a booklet I am close to finishing–Despising the Lamb: Pictures of Contempt in First Samuel
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First Samuel opens with a story about Elkanah and his wives, Hannah and Peninnah.  Hannah was unable to have children.  Peninnah bore children for Elkanah and smugly needled Hannah about it: “Her rival would taunt her severely just to provoke her, because the LORD had kept her from conceiving” (1 Sam. 1:6).
Jesus described the cross as a seed falling into the ground to die; His resurrection would be like a harvest (John 12:24). There is a fruitlessness associated with the cross, a sense of wasted potential.  Nothing about the cross seems successful or productive for the kingdom of God. Jesus was mocked for this as He hung in mid-air, bleeding to death (Matt. 27:42; Mark 15:30). The people and priests treated Him with contempt…
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The Voice of One 
Thanks Teague! Such an encouragement. I have been grappling with this very issue for about 9 months now, right out of the same passage of Scripture. I know that it is where the Lord has me, and I have subjected myself to the Lord’s decision in this. But the carnal mind just doesn’t give in, and it tends to dominate my thinking sometimes.
Just yesterday and this morning I was telling the Lord that I am at my wits’ end about what to do with this bossy carnal mind that keeps me unsettled even when the Lord shares His mind with me. Then I checked my email and your post was there! It is the edification I needed.
Thank you for lifting up the Cross that I have identified in. Sometimes in giving one’s life, the Cross is just too heavy to bear on one’s own, even if you are the one that God has chosen to do it. When the Lord provides a Cross, He also provides a Simon of Cyrene to help bear it. That was you today.
Love in Jesus, Mallory
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I’m so glad to hear that. And it’s good to remember that Jesus needed help with His cross. Because you’re right: even when we make that decision to deny self, take up the cross, & follow, it can get heavy. Thanks for sharing 🙂