2010 – Mar. 27 – The Art of Divine Conversation

Blogger's Note: A bit tardy in posting today due to some personal delays; but better late than never! ...

Study from God’s Word…1st Samuel 3: 1 – 7: 17 … Passage for Reflection: 1st Samuel 3: 10 … NIV 10 The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, "Samuel! Samuel!" Then Samuel said, "Speak, for your servant is listening."

My Journal for Today: Carrying on an intelligent, purposeful conversation can be a challenge, especially when you don’t know the person with whom you’re conversing. When God first came to Samuel, as a young, inexperienced prophet, Samuel had trouble recognizing the voice he was hearing was God’s; but when, with Eli’s help, he had faith that he was hearing from The Lord, Samuel was “all ears,” listening intently with a heart to surrender to anything God was saying. And over time Samuel came to get to know God’s voice and to listen to what God was saying to Him so that he, Samuel, could carry out God’s purposes.

At the end of his devotional for today, F. LaGard Smith asks a pointed question for me to ponder. He writes, ”Do I have balanced conversations with God, as eager to be “all ears” as “all mouth?” And to that question I have to say that it is my natural tendency to be speaking first to God rather than lending an attentive ear to “listen” for God communicating with me. It takes a purposeful choice for me to be silent – when I come to God, just as I am right now, early each morning – and try to “hear” what God is saying to me. And I have discovered that God “speaks” to me most often through His word.

I have to trust that God is listening to me; and I do. In Psalm 116: 1-2 we read,

1 I love the LORD, for He heard my voice;
He heard my cry for mercy.
2 Because He turned His ear to me,
I will call on Him as long as I live.

And I know from past studies, that the phrase “He turned His ear to me” in Hebrew, means that God bends down, gently and caringly, to hear what I have to say. It’s the word picture of a loving father bending down to hear what His little child has to say, not wanting to miss a word of the child’s voice.

We certainly know that God heard Samuel’s mother’s prayers, which led to Samuel’s birth and his consecration to the Lord; and now, in our passages today, we read that Samuel has gotten to know the God of the Universe and he has learned to hear God’s voice.

I have had, through the years, to learn how to “hear” God speak to me through His word, through others (e.g., my Pastor or my Christian friends), or through the circumstances in my life. But God hears my prayers; and He responds to me in His time and in His ways; and I “hear” what He says to me … as long as I’m doing all I can to have a surrendered heart and a will to “hear” what He desires for me to “hear” in our relationship.

I hope you are “hearing” God as you develop a deeper, more abiding relationship with Him. My friend, God does want to “hear” you; … BUT, He also wants you to “hear” Him as well. So, I pray, this morning, that we’re both listening intently and with purpose for our Lord to commune with us, letting us know His will and His ways for our lives. Only when we “hear” God can we respond and live for His purposes.

My Prayer for Today: Lord, … open my ears to what You say to me and to all who want to hear Your truth. Amen