“Did you hear what I just said?”
Every husband, wife, parent and child has heard that question. And most of us have had to admit, “Uh… no.”
Selective hearing is a real condition. It affects millions.
Young Samuel lived at the temple with the old priest, Eli. Back then, the Bible says, “the word of the LORD was rare.” God wasn’t speaking very often. Or maybe nobody was listening.
One night, Samuel was lying down when he heard someone call his name: “Samuel!”
He jumped up and ran to Eli. “Here I am; you called me.”
“I didn’t call you,” Eli said. “Go back and lie down.”
It happened again. And then a third time.
Finally, Eli figured it out. It was God calling the boy. So Eli told him: “If he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.'”
And when God called again, that’s exactly what Samuel said.
Now think about how most of us pray. “Listen, Lord, for your servant is speaking.”
We bring our list. We talk. We ask. We say “Amen.” And then we get up and leave before God has a chance to say anything at all.
So, what is listening? Listening is prayer with the volume turned down. It’s giving God the chance to get a word in.
Samuel learned to listen as a boy, and he kept listening his whole life. He became the prophet who anointed Israel’s first two kings.
God is still speaking. Are you listening?
Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, thank-you for speaking to me. Thank-you for giving me the listening ear of Samuel, so that I will be quick to listen and slow to speak. Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening. In the name of Jesus, Amen.
Wikipedia: Samuel, Eli (biblical figure), Books of Samuel
Look-It Up:
The story is told in 1 Samuel 3.
The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.
Free Bonus:
Samuel was the answer to his mother’s prayer (see Pray 4 Hope).
Samuel anointed both of Israel’s first kings, Saul and David.
The Greek philosopher Epictetus is credited with saying, “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.”