Is God Calling You?
"Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, Samuel! Samuel!'" (1 Sam. 3:10, NRSV)
Imagine the Lord standing beside you, calling you by name not once but again and again, as we see happening in the story of young Samuel. Would you hear?
We believe that God uses a number of ways to get our attention and stir us from our drowsiness. The call may enter our consciousness as a thought, an insight, a question, or an image that brings God to mind, inviting us to pause and listen. John Wesley urged believers to foster sensitivity to both the inner "promptings" and the "warnings" of the Spirit, either of which would be cause to turn to prayer. Divine presence may also manifest as a persistent longing for something more, or even - as with Samuel - a mysterious stirring in our sleep that awakens us to converse with the Almighty.
I once heard the late Morton Kelsey tell how he turned repeated midnight awakenings into sessions with God, receiving and recording a flood of insights. These insights not only expanded his spiritual awareness but also ultimately blessed countless individuals through his teaching and writing, including two books published by The Upper Room.
God called to Samuel not for Samuel's sake but to deliver an important message to someone close to Samuel, someone he was positioned to influence. From that night forward, Samuel devoted his life to voicing the living truth, bringing God's blessing to many people.
Imagine the Lord coming and standing beside you right now, calling you by name. Take a moment to attune your inner ear and to say,
"Speak, for your
servant is listening" (1 Sam. 3:10).
Stephen D. Bryant
Editor and Publisher
The Upper Room
From The Upper Room daily devotional guide, November/December 2009. Copyright © 2009 The Upper Room. All Rights Reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
