Frank’s Reflections

Samuel came looking. He was on a mission. A divine mission.

King Saul was going to be replaced. God needed a new king in Israel. 

“Samuel, here’s your mission, Go anoint the next king of Israel for Me.” Godly missions will always bring fear to your bones. They will make your insides shake when you think about it. “The God of all creation picked you to do His work.”

“Don’t think about it, just purpose in your heart to do it. You probably do not know how nor do you know the words to say.”

Moses didn’t when God spoke to him out of the burning bush. Moses, following God’s instructions, did lead a nation out of captivity. He didn’t have an army or a gun. He had a shepherd’s staff. What’s that? It is a long stick. But that stick would become a snake and then a stick again. It would be there to divide the Red Sea. Insignificant things to man can be used by God.

Back to Samuel. He was sent to the house of Jesse. David, Jesse’s youngest son at that time, was a shepherd boy. His resumé included the slingshot academy. A what? His self-taught learning experience prepared him to defeat the giant Goliath. Those lonely days with the sheep prepared  David for the spotlight of royalty. All that thinking in the fields brought about the noble actions of a king. The days of isolation with the sheep prepared him to rehearse how to do different things in various circumstances. To be able to keep the flock calm while he killed the bear and the lion. The sheep followed him in safety. That was practice in leading a nation in time of war. The people had confidence in David’s ability to lead them to victory. They recognized that God was with their leader. That assurance gave them the brave confidence to follow David wherever God would lead him. 

When the God of Heaven is first in one’s life, He will always take care of them in unexplainable ways. Ways of confidence, comfort, strength, and provision but most importantly, His Devine presence.

Remember David was a nobody, a shepherd boy, once. He became somebody, a king, to God. David had to go through a course of obstacles to reach that destination of somebody. It was a journey of life, and God was always there. The Lord was present even when David didn’t recognize His quiet presence. God never deserts His children.

Turn around. Be still. Look. You can sense the divine presence of the Almighty in your life.

We can’t hear Him because we have the volume of the world turned up so loud that it drowns out the voice of God. That appears like a simple statement, yet it seems profoundly true. When was the last time you heard a regular church attender say God spoke to me last night? Or when did that person say I’m to busy, I need to slow down and listen for God? It doesn’t happen too much in our modern high-tech environment.

The lad, Samuel, was awakened from his sleep by God. He arose and went to the priest, Eli, and asked, “What do you want?” Eli responded, “I didn’t call you, go back to bed.” Then it happened again. Samuel once again returned to Eli and asked, “What do you want?” Eli replied “I didn’t call you. Go back to bed.” When it occurred again, Eli said, “If this takes place again reply, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.'” (I Samuel 3:10 CSB) The next time that Samuel was awakened that night, Samuel answered the Lord.

Samuel didn’t have music or technology blaring in his ears. He was sleeping. He didn’t say, God help me to turn down the volume of the world so I can hear your whispering voice. He was ready to listen and respond to the God of heaven and earth.

How does God get your attention? Can He whisper and you will hear? Does he yell to you? Does He place you in some situation where you will finally look to Him for guidance? That is an uncomfortable spot.

Hindsight, and experience will teach His children to listen to that whisper. Wouldn’t it be easier to listen the first time? Samuel learned to listen to God as a young man. His life shows that he learned this lesson well.

Have you ever just stopped and looked at God’s creation? Really looked at the sky, the sun (for a moment) or even yourself. Look at your hand! It moves, it holds things -some things very tightly. How can we ever doubt that we are fearfully and wonderfully made? (Psalm 139:14) We serve a great God who loves us. If you ever doubt His love, just look up. Psalm 19:1 states, “the heavens declare the glory of God.”

Have you ever just stopped and thought how to bring glory to God? The answer is simply by doing the things that God would do. Being kind and helping others are just the beginning of an endless list. Letting God direct our thoughts and actions gets us on the right path.

Have you ever stopped and asked yourself, “Would God want me to do this?” Really think about it for a moment, then proceed based on His answer to you. The answer will always bring glory to Him. When you decide that your actions and speech are pleasing to Him, you are on the right track. God has called you, “so that you might obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (II Thessalonians 2:14 CSB)

As a Christian you must believe that God made you to bring glory to Him because He loves you. The Apostle Paul put it this way, “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen. (Romans 11:36 CSB)

So lets just stop and…