[Monday's Devotional] - Samuel

Samuel The stories of many of the heroes of the faith in the Old Testament begin with their childhood, or even before, when prophecies about them are made. These children undergo testing experiences in childhood which prepare them for leadership later on. This week I want to look at some of these stories and reflect on the children we nurture. Samuel has two Old Testament books named after him. The story begins with his mother, Hannah. She had a longstanding battle with another wife of her husband Elkanah, and was  taunted for her infertility. Hannah turned to God in desperation, praying and promising that if she could but bear a son, she would dedicate him to God. The result was Samuel and he grew into one of the greatest leaders Israel had ever known. He served as a prophet who could discern God's will; as a priest who led Israel to worship; and as a military leader. He chose, under God's direction, Israel's first two Kings, Saul and David. As soon as Hannah had weaned her son, (and although Hannah may have kept feeding him beyond the normal time perhaps to prolong the inevitable separation, he would still have been very young) Samuel was dedicated in the Temple in fulfillment of her vow and he served under Eli whose own sons should have done the job, only they were corrupt. You can read the story in the first few chapters of 1 Samuel. The writer is careful to point out that at the time: "the word of the Lord was rare, and there were not many visions" 1 Samuel 3:1 [NIV]  So it was very unusual that Samuel heard the audible voice of God, and perhaps explains why it required Eli to be woken from sleep three times before he realised what that it was the Lord calling the boy. Samuel himself had no idea what was going on, but he did as instructed and when God spoke the final time, he repeated what he had been told, "Speak Lord for your servant is listening". (1 Sam 3:9) When Samuel repeated what he had heard to Eli, so began his life as a prophet. Samuel was taken seriously because even though his words rebuked Eli, they agreed with those of another man of God (I Sam 2:27-36). God spoke to the boy Samuel, and the old man Eli took him seriously despite the apparent unlikelihood or unfamiliarity of the events the boy was experiencing and describing. Father God, Thank you that you use the young and the innocent to speak to your people. Help us not to discount the words you may be speaking to us through children. Amen.   Mairi Mowbray Twitter Website Copyright © 2017 St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email as a subscriber to the Daily Devotionals Our mailing address is: St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church 1a New Street Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 7BE United Kingdom Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list Want to be added to our mailing list? - sign up here!