Devotional on 1 Samuel

2014 – Chapel of the Holy Cross – Sedona, AZ

Can you hear me now?
1 Samuel 3: Then God came and stood before him exactly as before calling out, “Samuel, Samuel!”
It’s as Samuel sleeps that God first calls him. The lad hears the Voice of God but doesn’t recognize it as the Lord’s call. The old priest, Eli, (in spite of his failings) solves the riddle. Something unexpected is happening. God is calling. I wonder how often God speaks to me and I mistake his Voice for something else? “Now, there’s an unusual idea” or “Where did that come from?” Samuel mistook the call of God to be the call of Eli. Have I misidentified his voice to be my own rambling thoughts? I’ve learned something about God’s Voice in my own life. While God speaks fairly often I don’t listen very often. Itโ€™s as Samuel sleeps, unencumbered with the thoughts of everyday life that God calls his name. Could it be that my prayers are so full of my own wants and wishes that I drown out God’s Voice? Itโ€™s as I pray with a listening heart that Iโ€™m most likely to hear the Divine Voice in my own life.
Take Away: Prayer is as much about listening as it is about talking.

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