“Then the LORD came and stood nearby, calling as he had previously done, “Samuel! Samuel!” Samuel replied, ‘Speak, for your servant is listening!’” I Samuel 3:10 NET

This verse was part of my study early this morning. It both intrigues me and inspires me. Samuel had no idea it was God’s voice calling him the first three times. He thought it was Eli’s voice (the priest under whom he served). So he got up and went to Eli, only to find out it wasn’t him calling. But each time Samuel returned to lie down God called him again. He didn’t stop at just once. He kept calling for Samuel. Then finally Samuel says, “Speak, for your servant is listening!” Samuel was ready to hear . . . for whatever was about to be revealed.

I have a daily list of people I bring before the Lord in prayer. I sing and praise. I tell God all about my faults and failures, and I thank Him for His sufficiency in spite of me. I love prayer. But sometimes my prayers feel “busy”—maybe due to the stress or anxiousness of the day, or even because of the overwhelming needs on the list. I decided to just stop this morning, to be quiet, to listen, and let the requests go until a bit later in the day. Today I simply entrusted God to hold all of those situations in His care, and I said, “Speak, for your servant, Heidi, is listening.” 

 I truly believe that God still comes and speaks to us, repeatedly, but we often miss it. Maybe we don’t recognize Who is calling us because we’re looking to a different source for our answer. Or maybe we’re waiting for a grand entrance from God with an audible word, when in fact He comes to us with answers as whispers on our hearts and in our minds. But God still comes, He still calls us, and He calls us by name. The best response we can give is, “Speak, for your servant is listening!”