1 Samuel 3:10 God Speaks
Food for Thought
An all-creatures.org Guide to Kingdom Living

By Marni Montanez

1 Samuel 3:10 New King James Version (NKJV)

10. Now the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, 
“Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant hears.”

Notice there is a call from the Lord, to Samuel. There is a response from Samuel and then God speaks.  This is what happened with Moses when He was first called by God…..It began with a burning bush and Moses turned aside to look at this great sight and that is when God knew He had His attention, just as he knew He had Samuel’s attention.    In both event’s God waited for their response and then God spoke. In this interaction, God made the first move, Samuel and Moses responded to God's call and then God spoke.   They listened with their hearts and spirits. David, another godly man,  was constantly inquiring of the Lord, but the key to his success was that He listened well. 

The Bible is full of those who responded, inquired and then most importantly..."listened" to God. 

God still speaks today.   History tells us that God has always made the first move toward us to open up communication;   the question is "Are we listening?"

We cannot hear God while we are talking. Try having two different conversations with two people at once.   It is impossible.  We’re going to miss words or meanings; the same is true in our communication with God.  Silent focus is required in order to understand a message.

The problem is always in us.  Notice how silent God is when we are running our mouth.  He does not argue or even try to get our attention;  he waits for full attention. God yearns to speak to us more than we desire to hear. God made the first move when He sent His Son, Jesus because He wanted that interaction with us. Try being very still inside.  Thoughts will invade and noises will sound louder, but in practicing this quietness within,  we learn to listen well.  Too many of us spend much energy defending ourselves with words or trying to show others how wise and wonderful we are, but God is not impressed with our knowledge or ability to talk our way through any conversation.  God is only looking for a heart that is humble enough to listen.  In all that we speak and in all that we know it will never be of more value than what God wants to say to us.  It is vital that we learn to listen for God’s voice.

Challenge:   God speaks to each of us in very specific ways that is not like another. Simply close your mouth and begin listening as if you were sitting in front of someone who is talking.   Turn your attention to just listening.   

God bless

Marni

Go on to: 1 Samuel 15:22 Obedience
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The purpose of this series is to encourage people to live as loving, compassionate, and peacemaking children of God: Jesus tells us to pray, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10) God tells us through Micah (6:8), "He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God." And we know from Revelation 21:4 that there will be no more mourning, or crying, or pain, or death. Thus, Christian living requires us to set the standards of these conditions here on earth for our fellow human beings, and for the other animals, as a witness to the rest of the world. To do otherwise is not Christian.