1 Samuel 3:2-18
As a young child, Samuel lived in the temple with his mentor, Eli the priest. One night, the boy heard his name called, so he ran to ask Eli what he wanted. The priest, however, hadn't spoken, so he sent the child back to bed. This happened two more times before Eli realized that the Lord was the one calling the boy. Then he instructed Samuel to respond by asking the Lord what He wanted.
Almighty God still speaks to us today. The first time we "hear" Him is when He calls us to salvation. The Holy Spirit makes us aware that something is missing in our life, and then He points us to Jesus Christ as the answer.
Without the Savior, we are lost and hopeless. Everyone is born with a sinful nature that's "bent" away from God. The Father, who's holy and perfect, cannot be in the presence of unholiness. Therefore, the penalty for sin is death—eternal separation from Him. But God loves us, so to correct that situation, Jesus came to earth, lived the perfect life, and died as a substitute for mankind. He took the penalty for our wrong.
Salvation is the greatest gift. To receive it, all we have to do is trust in Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Then, He abides with us and continues to speak, guiding gently and encouraging us toward righteousness.
Have you felt God speaking to you? If so, don't delay. Ask Him to forgive your sin; then accept Christ's substitutionary sacrifice on your behalf, and choose to follow Him. Share your decision with a pastor or trusted Christian friend so that you can have guidance on this beautiful new journey.
I agree, it’s essential to a new (and old) Christian's walk to have trustworthy people close by. It's evident that Samuel didn't know God's voice at this time. He thought Eli was speaking to him. Instead of Eli saying "no it wasn't me", he could easily have asked what he heard and tried to step in to be that voice.
ReplyDeleteThis story show's us that one of the character's of a true man/woman of God is someone who isn't afraid to say no, and may often redirect us back to the source for the answer. We need to be careful about surrounding ourselves around people that know everything. A great mentor will not know everything! But, he/she will have a relationship with God and realizes the importance of seeking Him for the answers to our questions.