The Lord Calls Samuel
3:1 Now the young man Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.
2 At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place. 3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was.
4 Then the Lord called Samuel, and he said, “Here I am!” 5 and ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down.
6 And the Lord called again, “Samuel!” and Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” 7 Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.
8 And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the young man. 9 Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10 And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.” 11 Then the Lord said to Samuel, “Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. 12 On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. 13 And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. 14 Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.”
15 Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. 16 But Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.” 17 And Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.” 18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. 21 And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord. (ESV)
I love to see how obedient Samuel was! He thought Eli was calling for him, and he got up three times to GO AND SEE what he wanted. No self-talk about how annoyed he was, no grumbling, no, “HANG ONNNNNNNN–BE THERE IN A MINUTE!” Dude just GOT UP and went to see what his parent, if you will, wanted. What a solid example for us to follow.
As I was reading verse 10, just before leading up to the verse where the Lord tells Samuel He’s going to make the land of Israel tingle, I fully got goose bumps, reading about how the Lord came to Samuel and stood, again and called to him. That made me smile. God is SO ALIVE.
But, the verse that takes the cake for me TODAY is verse 19:
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.
This is our goal, True North! Who’s ready to be weaned from milk and become a carnivore?! Let’s GROW in our Lord, and let’s have Him BE WITH US, and let’s live so that none of OUR words fall to the ground.
That is the first thing I noticed about the chapter! Annnnd how I shall be with my mamasita today. Gracias, Stacy! :D
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord.
Because the Lord was with him, none of Samuel’s words were useless or ineffective. Everything that He said was used by God for great purposes and proved true, and because of this, everyone in the region quickly learned about Him. As Christians today, we don’t exactly tell the future, but we do know the ultimate ending; so what are we doing about it? Are we the kind of people whose every word God could use effectively to save people? Or are our conversations filled with trivial, godless matters? If we are praying for revival but not actively bringing it about, it will not happen. My conversation needs to always reflect Christ, and my attitude around nonChristians should be one of evangelism at all times. People at my high school should know about me because of my fervor in turning every conversation I have into an opportunity to present the Gospel, with gentleness and respect.
20 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord.
After reading Pastor Bobby’s blog about Street Cred Christianity verse 20 stood out to me because it shows that Samuel had street cred with all of Israel. The Israelites knew that Samuel was a prophet of God because he walked the walk that backed up his talk. How was Samuel able to do this? He was close to God! He knew His Word and lived a life of obedience to it, even when it was not easy. That is my prayer today….that I would be so close to God, so knowledgeable of His Word, living it out in all areas of my life, that everyone who knows me will know that I am a Christian. And not just know I am a Christian, but will be led to Christ because they see Him in me.
Again, something that I noticed! Thank you Beth Lauder for your comment! :)
Great point Beth! Samuel is definitely an example of Street Cred Christianity for all of us!
1 Samuel—(not gonna lie)—such an awesome book!
1 Sam. 3:19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.
Samuel was like Enoch—he walked with God. He was a godly person who, yes, had street cred that established himself as a prophet of God. Everyone knew! But although he likely ‘walked the way he talked’ (so to speak—wasn’t a hypocrite), I think words had a lot to do with that.
It says above that “the Lord…let none of his words fall to the ground”. In other words, all he said, came to pass. And I’m sure Samuel’s speech was godly and devoted to the Lord also.
I want to be like Samuel in this way: speaking graciously and kindly to all, in wisdom, to speak. I want my speech to be pleasing to God. I want my speech to be sincere and pleasing to the Lord. Lord, would my speech be pleasing to you, and would it glorify your name.
I’m excited for True North tonight!
Maranatha!
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground
Samuel was so truthful! Through God he spoke no lies, and what he said aways came true! I want to grow in the Lord so much that my speech reflects Him and that i can speak no lies. Lord please help me to give glory to You everyday in what i speak and do!
MMMM marvelous comment Maddie, I couldn’t agree with you more!! :]
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
What stood out to me was how humbly and reverently Eli accepts the verdict against him. Eli doesn’t whine and moan and say how its not fair how all these bad things are going to happen to him and his family. He recognizes his sin and doesn’t make excuses. He also recognizes God has the right to deal with him anyway he chooses because He is the one in charge. I want to handle the consequences to my sin in the same way. Not complaining and making excuses but owning up to it and recognizing God has every right to discipline me.
20 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord.
This is a verse i really took to heart, It shows us that we should make our faith known and let people know where we stand. If everyone knew that we were Christians, that would hold us to higher standards and really challenge our faith- but it’s worth it! I pray that God will help me be bold in sharing my faith and telling others that i am a follower of Jesus Christ.
Amen girl (:
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
Samuel has just heard what God has said. And now Eli asks Samuel to tell him what God told him. And so Samuel tells Eli of how God told him that punishment will come down on him and his household because of the careless, wild, disobedient conduct of his sons. They were blaspheming God, and because Eli had done nothing as a father to discipline them, punishment would not be held from him. And hearing this, Eli realizes his mistakes. He doesn’t get defensive, trying to make excuses for why he didn’t restrain his two sons from the evil that they got into. He owns up to his mistakes by acknowledging that it is the words of God. And he says that he can’t do anything but let the LORD do what he sees as good.
In the end, Eli accepted that God was above all else, and that he could see it all. He is a righteous judge, and the punishment that was about to fall on Eli and his household, Eli recognized that it was fully deserved. Eli wasn’t arrogant in trying to defend himself, but accepted the wrong that he had done, along with his sons. Now this is definitely not something common in our world today. Nobody wants to own up to the wrong which they have already committed. There is always excuses for why and there is always blame to fall on other people. I can’t be someone who is too arrogant to accept that I have done wrong, or someone too prideful to admit my wrong in front of others. When I see my sin, I need to be broken about it! I need to be ashamed, accepting that I have messed up, but then falling on my knees in repentance, that I sill strive not to do the same again! Whenever I am confronted about my sin, or I just see it in my own life, I need to not make excuses, but instead, accept my sin and the consequences it will bring as I turn away from it and strive to not fall into it again, but only through God’s power in me!
STEFFEN!!!great comment- I just learned a lot from what you said.it helped me understand what was happening in this chapter!thanks
Thanks Michelle!!
When God calles to us we are to answer with we hear I am as your servant.
What a great chapter today. This is a great chapter on obediance!!! Eli listens to what God told Samuel and accepts it. He does not complain. He realizes that that was God’s will!!! Eli knows the authority God has over him and respects that!!!! Reading that makes me excited to be obediant!! If Eli can be obediant through big situations then I can through little ones!!!!
MARANTHA!!!!!!!!
10 And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”
i love how samuel has an ATAPAT attitude! even in the middle of the night, samuel is ready to respond to God and do His will. then samuel tells eli what the Lord has told him, without holding anything back. this shows a remarkable resolve to do God’s will. rather than lie or be deceitful, samuel does what he must. i also liked the part where samuel says “Speak, for your servant hears”. though God doesnt appear to people like He did in the OT age, with prophetic visions and the like, He still talks to us through His words. whenever i read the Bible i need to be ready to hear and obey what God has to say for me, just like samuel was ready in the middle of the night to listen to God. i pray that i would have an ATAPAT attitude like samuel, and whenever and whatever the Lord needs me to do, i will do with a faithful heart!
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
Yes Dan, Eli’s humility and respect for the Lord stood out to me in this passage too! Eli acknowledges his sinfulness in failing to restrain his wicked sons and humbly accepts the punishment from the Lord. He understands that God’s ruling is good and right, because He alone is holy. May I accept conviction from the Lord in the same manner! Rather than pridefully making justifications for my sin, I need to recognize the Lord’s goodness and holiness. Ultimately, the punishment is transforming me into the likeness of Jesus Christ. I pray that I would accept this with complete humility.
9 Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
Its amazing how God actually talked out loud to people back then. That would be so cool. Samuel had an amazingly obedient heart its so cool. Even in the middle of the night, Samuel didnt hesitate to jump up and fulfil whatever God had in mind for him. We should all have this kind of enthusiasm
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
I loved so much about this chapter. I love how Eli was understanding of the Lords plans. He was respectful to the Lord and humbly realized that he was being punished for is family’s sins. I just love how Eli humbly accepts what the Lord is doing and does not give into anger or hurt.
It’s so funny…every morning when I’m on here I always exactly see 14 comments!
This has always been one of my favorite chapters in the book!
8 And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the young man.
I think it’s awesome how the Lord calls to Samuel. The Samuel thinks it’s Eli and realizes it’s the Lord. It’s quite interesting. It’s cool to see that Samuel’s mother wasn’t even suppose to give birth, but the Lord allowed her to have a son and now God is using Samuel as a prophet!
Just like Hannah and Mary, Samuel was favored in the eyes of the Lord. Notice how he obeyed when he was called. That is obviously something God favors. Notice how he tells the whole truth and nothing but the truth, something that God also favors. Like many of you guys said, he had street cred for being so Godly…everyone knew that he was a man of God, does everyone know I am? hmmmmmmmmm I gotta think about that. I definitely can put myself more out there, sharing the Gospel with everyone I knows. Hopefully my neighbor is coming to church today with me along with my pal from school! Pray that they do, also pray that this tendenosis I have (look it up if you wanna know what it is. I don’t know how to explain it. XD) will not be a huge effect on my future and that God will show me whether I should get another surgery or not for it. THank you peeps. :)
Good morning!!
Verse 10 ‘And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”‘
Samuel has set a great example for us here. He is completely listening to Jesus and is giving HIM all the attention he can. This what I should start to do especially if I am talking to HIM in prayer….. I not only need to ask for forgiveness and give thanks but I need to LISTEN to what HE has to say because HIS word is never at fault and you will get the most out of it if you just listen.
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
I almost felt sorry for Eli…even though he was supposed to restrain his sons because his response to God’s curse was remarkable! Eli knew that God was the perfect judge over all, and trusted him to carry out his plans for punishment. He understood that him and his family had sinned, and now took the punishment with content. Sometimes, I can be in denial of a specific sin in my life and then not realize why I was being punished until later. I need to reevaluate my lifestyle and admit to obvious sins, repenting or taking punishment well with them. :D
1 Sam 3:19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.
Lord, please be with me today and let me store up and use all of Your words to guide me today! And please be with all the TN students and leaders as well!
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
Everything that the Lord does in our lives is for a purpose, whether it be good or bad. We should follow what he is calling us to do because there is a reason for it, and it will show him our faithfulness. Let him lead you through your trials, and praise him for the good he does for you.
Great comment! (:
AMEN
While reading this I was just thinking how much faith Samuel had to have to be used by God. And though God doesn’t give us direct revelation anymore, we can still do what His word tells us; and be used by Him to do great things!
I read…
What stood out to me in this chapter was Samuel’s courage to tell Eli that the prophecy of his two son’s deaths were coming. It would be very awkward and heartbreaking to tell someone that their two sons were about to die, however, Samuel did it in obedience to the Lord. I pray that the Lord would give me Samuel’s obedient heart.
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord.
These two verses really stood out to me. I want to be like Samuel, he grew in the Lord and grew in his faith and so the Lord was with him! He never let his words fall to the ground. I have grown so much in the last 7 months but my goal is to grow even more in the Lord and make it noticeable to others. I want to be different and stand out. Like it says in verse 20, everyone knew Samuel was a prophet of the Lord. I want to people to notice me and the last thing i want is to be a hypocrite! I am going to be more like Samuel and Hannah!!!
Allie! You have encouraged me so much over the last 7 months. It has been amazing to watch you grow in the Lord.
AMEN and DIDO to your comment! (:
<3
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.
This verse is so encouraging. I should be forever faithful to God so that I may continually grow in him and his power may help my words for him never fail. Samuel is a humble servant of God, and I should aspire to be like him. I also get the impression that he always considered God’s perspective first instead of listening to others’ opinions. This is important for all Christians–to think of “what would Jesus do?” before listening to your peers, who aren’t always right. God, however, is always right and therefore you can never go wrong when you spend time praying to him.
mmmm i feel ya girl!
10 And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”
Like others have said, Its really cool that Samuel has such an ATAPAT attitude. He is so willing to listen to God- sometimes i feel like i dont have that attitude. its like an analogy about reading Gods word. Gods word is there all the time and its like its ‘calling to me’…yet sometimes i dont respond and i neglect it. God is my master and i am his slave…I need to be praising Him and i need to have more of an ATAPAT attitude towards His commands- and He commands me to read his word and grow in the knowledge of it. Something so simple as to read His word and meditate on it should not pass by through the day…let alone a calling from Him!Thats something im going to work on!
Maranatha!
ELLO… I read
I like verse 18,”So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.””
I like this verse because it talks about saying everything GOD wants us to. Even though the news seemed bad to Eli Samuel told him because he needed to. Eli didn’t get mad but simply said Let HIM do what seems good to HIM. I never have to be afraid of what I have to say to someone because if I don’t say it I am a coward and if I do then I please GOD.
CYA
Samuel’s willingness and obedience at the beginning of the chapter is amazing. After God says his name, he immediately goes to Eli humbly willing to serve. Samuel does not simply conduct himself with obedience but with immediate obedience. Even after the third time and Eli gives him directions on how to respond to the Lord, Samuel DOES it. It is evident that Samuel respected Eli and this respect is manifested in his actions. He responds to Eli with an ATAPAT attitude, “here I am.” I even like Samuel’s response to the Lord…”your servant hears” We are servants to the Lord and even if the Lord calls me at a time that is inconvenient or to a place which is inconvenient, I pray that I would willingly respond to His direction in my life.
13 And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them.
Eli’s household was going to be punished by God beacuse Eli did not do anything about the sins of his sons. If we see someone who we know is stumbling or causing others to stumble, and do nothing, we are not doing anyone a favor. In fact we are making things much worse. We need to encourage the people around us who claim to be Christian to make sure that they are striving to be blameless infront of the world. We need to confront someone we see stumbling into sin and make sure they repent. If we allow someone to sin, we are sinning ourselves. If we know we ought to be doing something to stop them from sinning, yet we do not, we show that we are more afraid of men than the LORD. We must fear God more then anything we can even think of.
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him.
I’m encouraged by Samuel’s obedience in this chapter, especially in this verse when he is asked to deliver some pretty tough news. Samuel is just a boy and yet he has to tell Eli, his mentor, the man instructing him in living a Godly life, about God’s coming punishment of his family. That’s a challenging task, and yet Samuel follows through and doesn’t hide anything. I always contrast this moment with Jonah’s failure to do the tough task that God asks of him; Jonah tries to run away and avoid the responsibility–and we all know how that turned out. I don’t want God to have to send a metaphoric equivalent of a giant fish into my life to swallow me in order for me to heed His call. I pray that instead I will, like Samuel, respond to God’s call with obedience, no matter what He asks of me.
As Boyd said, the obedience Samuel showed in this chapter is so encouraging. He did exactly what the Lord asked and what Eli asked, though it was hard. It was also amazing to read that the Lord spoke directly to Samuel. That would be an unbelievable experience, to hear the words of the Lord as clear as your father in the next room! That would be amazing.
Also another thought that came to my mind while reading this chapter was in verse 7 which says “Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.” Even though Samuel was raised knowing who the Lord was, and was brought to the presence of the Lord many times, he had not made a personal commitment to Him yet. This was cool to read when Samuel first came to Know the Lord.
Wow, thats incredible how God used Samuel like that to spread His word!
He didn’t even know God’s word when He first appeared to Him!
And to ACTUALLY hear God speak to you?
I’m pretty darn jealous of this kid!
And he was probably around our age, maybe even younger!
I pray that God would use me like He did Samuel to spread His word to multitudes of people :)
Mold and bend me to Your ways Lord, for I am Yours :)
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.
What a great example this is to all of us. I want to grow in my walk with God so that it is clear to all that I really have a relationship with him. What an awesome thought that the Lord is with me!
Please pray for this new sermon series and for Revival: Winter Edition coming up that the words I speak from God’s Word won’t fall to the ground. But that people will hear God’s Word and truly respond. Pray that students will get saved and that all of us who already are will be more revived in the Lord than we have ever been before! Make sure you signed up for Revival if you haven’t and for those who have pray every day for what God is going to do and invite a friend!
I am so excited to see what God is going to do next!
Samuel is a great example of an obedient boy, trained in the service and Word of God. He was obedient, a faithful servant (going to his master over and over in the middle of the night), truthful, and grew to be a true “Street Cred” man of God. I love the story of Samuel. His story always reminds me to strive for obedience in every aspect of my life and to elevate my view of God.
10 And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”
I really like this verse. It demonstrates the awesome attitude that Samuel had towards God. He was ready to serve. He totally opened up his heart and gave Him his everything. This is such a great example for me. Samuel did not hold anything back, he gave it all to the Lord.
15 Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.
If God told me that something bad was going to happen to my boss, I would be afraid to tell said boss what God said. Yet, despite feeling the same way, Samuel goes through with it. He easily could have lied, hoping to avoid trouble, but he respected his elder and told the truth. And look how it turned out: he did not get into trouble at all, and the Lord was with him.
I know this a somewhat obscure application, but this telling the truth part is actually what stood out to me. Many times, I am faced with the decision to either do something honestly/tell the truth, or do something not quite honestly. Although it’s not something I really struggle with, it’s still very important to speak truthfully, because lies and dishonesty can only get one deeper into sin.
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.
I found this verse to be a great reminder to let us know that no matter what; God is with us! At troubled times alot of us loose hope and faith. But we need to stand firm in God and trust that he will always give us a way out of tough times! Whenever we go through trials, we need to remeber that God will never give us more than we can handle. We need to depend on God and let him guide us, besides He is the one in charge of our lives; not us! :)
I am starting to notice some contrasts here in the book of 1 Samuel. A verse from yesterday brings it out, when God says, “For those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.” In today’s SOTD, we see how seriously God means this! Samuel (even at an early age) was honoring the Lord, and God was with him. Eli’s sons were despising God, and God promises their destruction!
Another contrast is Samuel and Eli. Samuel is willing to tell the hard truth to Eli about his sons. But Eli was not willing to speak up and restrain his sons!
On both counts, I want to be like Samuel!
12 On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end.
This verse is great because yesterday this reality was introduced in the previous chapter, and today it comes up again! God always keeps His promises, be they “good” or “bad” (from humans’ perspective….of course everything that is God’s will is good). I need to remember this because sometimes it seems that all of God’s promised are really far in the distance, but this may or *may not* be true. Specifically thinking about Jesus returning….I need to be thinking about this every day and not be discouraged by letting myself think that it isn’t going to happen anytime soon! Like I said before…it may happen very soon, it may happen tonight, or it may happen in a few years or much longer than that. I don’t know, but God does, and God is going to keep that promise.
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
It’s so sad that Samuel knew his sons were doing wicked things but did not try to stop them–I don’t ever want to do that! But I like that his attitude upon hearing the word of the Lord. His attitude shows that God is the one in charge and can do whatever he wants and he is submitting to that. I don’t want to be someone who fights the Lord but eventually goes along with his plan. I want to be ready to say “Yes” to anything God wants to do in my life because he is holy, has the big picture and is seeking his glory!
And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”
I pray that when God calls me to do His will I will be like Samuel and drop everything I am doing even if it is not convenient to me, to do God’s will, just like Simon and Andrew the fishermen-made-disciples.
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
In this verse both Samuel and Eli show great qualities. Samuel, even though he is worried that his father may get angry at him for telling Eli what will happen to him, he still does it, because his father asked him to- No questions asked. I need to make sure I show this same kind of respect towards my parents. Even if I don’t agree with them, I need to obey them. Secondly, Eli demonstrates an amazing respect, or rather, fear of the Lord. Even though he knows that he is going to suffer the consequences, he still knows and admits that the Lord’s plan is best. He is essentially agreeing with something that will directly harm him! Now that is reverence for God’s will!! So, like Samuel and Eli, I need to be showing respect towards my parents and other authorities in my life (especially teachers…) and more importantly make sure I entirely fear and have reverence for the Lord. Only with the fear of him will I be able to do what pleases him and understand how truly great his love is!
MARANATHA!
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.
What an encouragement!! Great reminder that God is with us always!! Sometimes it seems not as tangible to say, “God is always with us…” but when you look at how he was totally guiding and working in Samuel’s life, it’s so obvious, and it should be obvious in our own lives! And that He won’t let Samuel’s works fall to the ground!! So awesome! I pray that in my EVERYDAY speech I can give God the glory He deserves!!
10 And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM. What an amazing verse!!! I love the attitude Samuel has in this verse. Even though he hadn’t heard the word, he had the serving attitude that I should have. Sometimes its not easy having a 24/7 serving attitude for God and I need to constantly make sure that I’m on top of that. If Samuel could be a servant, than I could too! My focus for this week is to keep that full-time servant attitude and be ready at a moments notice! Praying for a Revival!!!
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Maranatha!!!!!!!!!!! Have you signed up for winter revival?
I think this whole chapter is so awesome because it’s so cool that Samuel got to hear from God but I get to hear from God all the time from His word and prayer which is something that I need to take advantage of more often and have an unsatified apetite for the Bible
13 And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them.
Okay, I don’t know if this is entirely right, but this is what I got from this verse…
This is a lot like Pastor Bobby’s message today! When Christ was talking to the churches, He told one that they were in trouble because they didn’t cast out the hypocrite and the evildoer. I noticed that God did the same thing in 1 Samuel! He tells Samuel that He will punish Eli’s house because there was a blasphemer in his house and he didn’t do anything about it! I need to make sure to strike hypocrisy out of my life and not to associate myself with things that will bring a bad image of Christ to others.
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
The level of trust that Samuel puts in the LORD here is amazing. knowing that the family that he grew up with would be destroyed by God, and trusting that He was doing the right thing would be a very difficult thing to accept. I want to put God’s will above mine in my life, and not just pray for what I feel is best. No matter what happens in my life, I will put my faith in God.
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
Samuel’s father did not respond to Samuel’s retelling of the vision with confusion, frustration, or anger, but instead with trust. He was calm because he had confidence that the Lord will work everything out. He is the Lord, the Creator, our God, and he can do anything. We need to recognize his power, just like Eli did.
1 Samuel 3
13 And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. 14 Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.”
Eli the priest was not faithful to God when it came to restraining his sons from doing evil. He allowed them to continue to dishonor the name of the Lord. God’s punishment for this sin in Eli’s life was severe and affected his future generations. I bet the people of Israel thought that Eli was a hypocrite for allowing his sons to sin against the people. Eli’s example was defaming the name of the Lord and causing others to stumble over his hypocrisy. God is not going to allow people who profess Christianity to defraud His name as evidenced here by the story of Eli. God will punish and bring down vengeance on those who defraud and mislead others into disbelief because of their sin. I pray that we as followers of Christ will not give into our sin and let it master over us.
1 Corinthians 10:12-13 12 So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall. 13 No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it.
FIGHT SIN WITH THE FORCE OF GOD
Samuel was so obedient to eli that every time he thought eli called samuel immediately went to him. this relates to me with my parents, when they call me or when i even think they called me i need to be ready at attention to serve them. this is going against all of whet the world trys to force on teenagers today. i need to rebel and actually be ready to serve parents immediately when they call.
MARANATHA!!!!!!!!
3:1 Now the young man Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.
when i read this verse i thought of how lucky we r to have the bible right here at our finger tips. here it is saying that the word of the Lord is rare, but now in our times we can pick it up whenever we want and read it all. not only that, but we have been blessed to live in a place where we r not persecuted for it. we r so blessed byu God and i am very thankful. i am going to take better advantage of this opportunity that God has given me by trying to keep a bible with me where ever i go so that i can read it when i get a chance of some down time. o and i think it is awesome that samuel got to talk to God like he did later in the chapter. that is going to be so cool to do someday when i meet my maker in heaven!
Ahhh love this chapter!!! I love Samuel’s obedience to his master and most of all to God. What a great reminder for me when I’m not exactly wanting to listen to my parents right away.
19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. 21 And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord.
I love this!! God spoke to Samuel, and immediately he answered, and God blessed him for that! So encouraging knowing how pleased God is when we obey Him!
18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.”
This verse really stuck out to me because Samuel told Eli of the destruction that was to come upon his house from God from the disobedience. I loved Eli’s response in saying that the Lord knows what is good for him. I want to be like Eli in his response to what the Lord does in his life.
I like verse 10 how Samuel, upon hearing that the LORD was calling, immediately responded with open ears and an open heart for whatever the LORD was going to say!!!!!!
MARANATHA!!!!!!!!!!!!
13 And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them.
This is such an awakening for everyone because at points in our life some Christians are hypocrites. If we know someone is doing something wrong in front of us and we don’t do anything about it then who are we to call outselve Christians. I pray that if something happens I will change it and not be a hypocrite.