Articles

“For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?" 

2 Samuel 22:32

Samuel, a prophet and a judge in Israel, was uniquely called by God, even when he did not yet know the Lord. As we look to the first time the Lord called out to Samuel, he was lying down, resting, and he began hearing a voice calling out to him. Samuel thought it was Eli, and would present himself to Eli, saying “Here I am.” Yet Eli informed him that he was not calling for him. Samuel would then go back to lie down again, and would hear again, a voice calling him. Remember, Samuel did not yet know the voice of the Lord so he continued to think it was Eli who was calling him. By the third time of the Lord calling for Samuel, and Samuel going to Eli to ask what he needed from him, it was then that Eli instructed Samuel that it was the Lord calling him. Eli informed Samuel on how to respond to the Lord’s calling. So, Samuel went back to lie down again, and when he heard yet again the Lord calling for him, Samuel was able to reply with “Speak, for your servant is listening.”

Isn't this story so relatable? How many times have we ignored the voice of the Lord, for the simple fact that we were not in tune with Him. Sometimes, we can miss the Lord’s voice if we are not making ourselves accessible and available to Him, through prayer and meditation. Life can become so busy, and full of distractions, that we can easily neglect our prayer-life, and neglect spending time with the Lord, listening for what He wants to say to us.

Clearly, Samuel made himself available after learning the voice of the Lord, and was able to fulfill his calling and purpose that God had set out before him. Samuel became a prophet and a judge in Israel, and that would not have come to pass if Samuel 

continued living from a place of disbelief, and ignorance of the Lord. Samuel chose to recognize God’s calling as that of clear direction, and command. Samuel chose to lean into all that God had for him, and turned his attention to the Lord’s direction. 

God is our rock… unchanging, steadfast, consistent. The Lord never gave up on Samuel! He never changed His calling over him, He was steadfast in His approach to Samuel, and He was consistent about calling out to Samuel until He had his attention. 

The Lord is so patient with us, isn't He? He will not give up on us, and He will continue to gently press in until we hear Him, and obey. God is the rock above all else - providing strength in our weakness, stability in our insecurity, and clarity in our confusion. The strength of the Lord is like nothing else. When we are weak, He is strong, and He is there to fight for us. When we are feeling insecure, He is our stability where we find our very identity, which all security stems from. When we are confused by the world’s messages, He is our clarity, giving us a defined, clear direction that leads us and the world back to Him. If we simply offer ourselves as servants, like Samuel did, we will be able to confidently call the Lord our rock, and respond to God’s calling over our lives just like Samuel did, with a response of “Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.”