Are You Listening?
Samuel's mother, Hannah, was barren until she cried out to the Lord for a son and promised to give him to the Lord. She did have a son, and she took him to Shiloh to serve alongside Eli, the priest. Before Samuel came to know the Lord, the Lord called his name 3 times while he was sleeping. Each time, he went to Eli to see why he was calling. It was not Eli. It was the Lord. Eli told Samuel to return to his bed, and the next time God called to say, "Speak, for Your servant is listening." Samuel obeyed, and God not only spoke to him again, but he gave him a special message to deliver to Eli. I am glad Samuel decided to listen, but are we listening for the Lord to speak to us?
I am convinced by all of the stories in the Bible and the clear references to God speaking to people that God does speak all of the time. We do not hear Him for several reasons. We may not know His voice, and we think it is not God who is calling us. However, if we will be open to the fact that God could be calling us and ask if it is Him, He will communicate with us. Also, we may have a hard heart toward the Lord, so we cannot hear Him very well. We need to make sure our heart is clean by confessing our sins and seeking after the Lord through His Word and prayer. Then, we will be able to hear when we listen. Finally, we may want Him to speak to us, just to confirm what we want. Remember He is Lord, and we are His servants, like Samuel confessed. If we listen like a servant wanting to hear his master, so he can obey, God will be glad to speak to us. Therefore, I pray that we all will listen, and when He calls to us, we will say, "Speak, for Your servant is listening."
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Samuel 4-7.
I am convinced by all of the stories in the Bible and the clear references to God speaking to people that God does speak all of the time. We do not hear Him for several reasons. We may not know His voice, and we think it is not God who is calling us. However, if we will be open to the fact that God could be calling us and ask if it is Him, He will communicate with us. Also, we may have a hard heart toward the Lord, so we cannot hear Him very well. We need to make sure our heart is clean by confessing our sins and seeking after the Lord through His Word and prayer. Then, we will be able to hear when we listen. Finally, we may want Him to speak to us, just to confirm what we want. Remember He is Lord, and we are His servants, like Samuel confessed. If we listen like a servant wanting to hear his master, so he can obey, God will be glad to speak to us. Therefore, I pray that we all will listen, and when He calls to us, we will say, "Speak, for Your servant is listening."
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Samuel 4-7.