She stood at the entrance of the holy tabernacle with a young bull that the priest had just slaughtered, a bushel of flour, a skin of wine and her three year old son. Tears were rolling down her cheeks because she was going to leave her only son with the priest.

She had been here several years previous and had wept bitterly praying that God would give her a male child. “If you give me a son I will give him to You for his entire life,” she promised God.  Being barren was a horrible disgrace for a married woman. Now, she had a child – a male child.
 
She kept her vow and gave him up.
 
Grateful for her son, Hannah lifted her voice and began to sing a prayer to the Lord (1 Sam 2:1-10).  It was a prophetic song that exalted the Lord – a combination of prayer, praise and prophecy all intertwined.

This prophetic prayer-song was not sung by a “prophet,” or an “intercessor” but a humble homemaker who sang by inspiration of the Holy Spirit. As the wind of the Spirit of God blew through this holy woman, her prayer-song revealed the future and declared the Messiah’s kingdom. 

This is the power of songs of prayer.
 
In the scriptures one of the original Hebrew
words for prayer is “tephillah” (tef-il-law’).i  In general terms it means “supplication to God” but also means “intercession, supplication for another.”

This tephillah is intercession prayer or supplication expressed in song. The Hebrews often sang their prayers (Isaiah 1:15).  There are Hebrew and Greek words for prayer that suggest a direct petition or short, sharp cry of a distressed heart (Ps 30:2; 2 Cor 12:8) sung out in supplication.

As I stood on a platform in Manila, Philippines in front of over eight thousand worshipers that had gathered for the worship seminar the Holy Spirit arose inside of me and I began to pray singing.  Several thousand worship ministries had come forward for impartation.

I sensed a tremendous presence of the Lord.  All of the sudden there arose from those at the front a crescendo of prayer singing.  I was deeply moved in my spirit as I heard the melodic cry from this crowd of worshipers.  I am convinced this prayer or praise singing is a key opening up an artisan of the Holy Spirit in any situation.

One of the Hebrew words for praise “tehillah” and is one letter different from the Hebrew for prayer – “tephillah.”  This word means praise, a song or a hymn of praise. It is found several places in scripture.