Now the LORD came
and stood and called as at other times, "Samuel! Samuel!" And Samuel
answered, "Speak, for Your servant hears." (1Samuel 3:10 NKJ)
The story of Samuel
has always intrigued me, perhaps because the Lord called me at a young age too.
We know of Samuel because he was the second major prophet in Israel . . . Moses
being the first. The mother of Moses hid him in a floating bassinet in the Nile
River. The mother of Samuel brought him to the High Priest and literally gave
him to the Lord.
Moses was reared in
Pharaoh's palace in Egypt, and for forty years was trained in leadership
skills. Then he spent another forty years being trained as a shepherd on the
backside of the desert. Samuel, on the other hand, was reared in the High
Priest's home and, even as a child, served the Lord in a linen ephod in the
Temple.
For Moses, the Lord
spoke to him from a burning bush that wasn't destroyed. And he argued with God
about his call. For Samuel, the Lord spoke from out of the darkness of the
Temple. The Sons of Eli had allowed the lamp of God to go out. Eli, the High
Priest, was getting blind. And God had stopped showing his revealed will. It
was truly dark in Israel, but out of the darkness God broke his silence and
called Samuel. And instead of arguing with God, he replied, "Speak, for
your servant is listening."
It always troubles
me to discover, after the fact, that the Lord has been calling me and I didn't
hear him. Jehovah called Samuel three times before Samuel understood that it
was the Lord calling, but Samuel heard his voice every time. And when he knew who
was calling, Samuel replied, "Speak, for your servant is listening."
Dear Father, thank
you for revealing yourself to us through Christ. Enable me to listen carefully
for your voice and reply as Samuel did. I pray this in the name of Jesus. AMEN
God will speak to
you. Listen for his voice today!
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