God speaks to Samuel

Samuel 1 Chapter 3

At the time, the boy Samuel was serving the Lord by assisting Eli. Messages from the Lord were quite rare and visions were uncommon, but one night Eli, who was almost blind, had gone to bed. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the Tabernacle near the Ark of God. Suddenly the Lord called out, "Samuel! Samuel!"
"Yes," said Samuel, "What is it?" He jumped up and ran to Eli, "Here I am. What do you need?"
"I didn't call you," said Eli, "Go back to bed."

Samuel had never had a message from the Lord before, so by the time the Lord called a third time, and Samuel ran each time to Eli, then Eli realized the message was coming from the Lord. He told Samuel to go and lie own and next time the voice called, to answer, "Yes, Lord your servant is listening." So Samuel went back to bed.

The Lord called again and Samuel replied as Eli had said. Then the Lord told Samuel, "I am about to do a shocking thing in Israel. I am going to carry out my threats against Eli and his family. I have warned him continually that judgment is coming for his family because his sons are blaspheming God and he hasn't disciplined them. So I have vowed that the sins of Eli and his sons will never be forgiven by sacrifices or offerings."

Samuel stayed in bed until morning and got up and opened the doors of the Tabernacle as usual. He was afraid to tell Eli what the Lord had said. But Eli called to him and asked him what the Lord said and told him God would punish him if he held anything back. So Samuel told Eli everything. "It is God's will," said Eli, "Let him do what he thinks is best."

As Samuel grew up, the Lord was with him and everything Samuel said was wise and helpful. All the people of Israel from one end to the other knew that Samuel was confirmed as a great prophet of the Lord. The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh and gave messages to Samuel at the Tabernacle. And Samuel's words went out to all the people of Israel.

BIBLE NOTES SHOW: Since Moses and Joshua, God's spoken words were rare. By Eli's time, no prophets were speaking God's messages to Israel. Why? Look at Eli's sons, they refused to listen to God and allowed greed to get in the way. Many Israelites were full of sin.

Wouldn't you expect that God would speak to an aged Eli instead of the child Samuel. But God's chain of command is based on faith, not age or position. God uses unexpected channels

Eli spent his life in service to God, but in pursuing his mission, he neglected the responsibilities in his own home.

HOW DOES THIS CHAPTER RELATE TO US TODAY? Listening and responding is vital in a relationship with God. He does not always use a human voice and we must be ready to listen and act upon what he tells us. We must be like Samuel and say, "Here I am, Lord", when he calls us to action.

Eli neglected his family responsibilities. Don't let your desire to do God's work cause you to neglect your family. If you do, your mission may degenerate into a quest of personal importance and your family may suffer the consequences.

Yours in Christ,
Mary

SUCESSFUL HEALING REPORT: Thanks to your prayers, Al’s cancer is gone! His tumor, however remains inoperable and he is home living as normal a life as can be expected. Continue to pray for him. Gene’s biopsy proved his tumor was benign and he has been removed from our prayer list. Barb has been moved to a rehab facility to work on her speech etc., keep praying for her.

Prayer Requests are needed for:
HEALTH: Gabe, Wanda, Janice Long’s parents, Arlene’s nephew David, Lori (who suffered a terrible accident)and her family and my neighbor Al who is nearing the end of his life. And Barb who went in for back surgery and had a heart attack and stroke. Also for Robert Sargent with lung cancer and Marthaline Sargent with serious health issues. Update on Stella: She is 10 weeks old and has her own room at the hospital. The doctors continue to experiment with respirators, but her parents can see progress in her lung activity. They need your prayers so badly. Let’s all raise our voices to God to hear our prayers.
SPIRITUAL UPLIFTING: Gail, Mary
RESTORATION OF FAITH: Al, John
LOVE AND SUPPORT: Claire, Hunter
SUPPORT: Haiti, Chile, those who need jobs, those who are about to lose or have lost their homes. Pray too, for our country’s leaders and our military people who die each day for our freedom.