Spend time in prayer and silence with God asking him to meet you and speak to you.
Bible Reading
And the LORD came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.” 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. On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. 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. 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.”
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. But Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.” 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.” 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.”
And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.
– 1 Samuel 3:10-19
Devotion
God’s message is sometimes hard to hear, and even more difficult to share. Can you imagine being a child and having to deliver this message to the person who was raising you? Rather than shy away, Samuel spoke the truth. We shouldn’t be afraid to follow God’s clear direction.
The good news is that speaking the truth in love is God’s plan FOR us to follow. “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:15-16)
Eli’s response to Samuel was excellent. Even though Eli had failed to address the sin in his sons’ lives, he did trust that what God was doing was right.
The Big Question
How do you respond when you are confronted by the truth? Each of us needs to be ready to listen and humbly accept what God says. This is one reason it’s critical for you to spend time every day in God’s Word. It’s God’s plan FOR you.
Conclude in prayer and silence reflecting on what you’ve learned.