Want to Hear God’s Word? Follow Samuel’s Example.

Do you wish that God would talk to you more often? Do you have trouble recognizing God’s voice in your life? Then the story of Samuel from the Old Testament may be very encouraging for you to review.

Many of us are familiar with at least the beginning of Samuel’s story. His mother, Hannah, covenanted with God that if He would give her a son, she would dedicate him to God. The Lord indeed blessed Hannah with Samuel, who began as a child to serve Eli the priest. Most Bible scholars also remember well the tale of Samuel being called three times in the night before being told that it was God trying to speak with him. But how much do we remember about Samuel after the fateful night when he first heard the Lord’s voice?

Samuel eventually became a great prophet. We can learn a lot about him from a single verse, as long as we understand its contents: “And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground” (1 Sam 3:19). That phrasing may be unfamiliar to us, but the metaphor was well understood in ancient days. Think of an arrow that falls to the ground—it is useless in that it never reaches its target. This verse simply says that God made sure all of Samuel’s words hit their mark—that Samuel’s prophecies were all fulfilled.

What does this tell us about Samuel? If all of his words were true and came to pass, then he must have had the Spirit with him always. Samuel had learned as a child to distinguish God’s voice, and he apparently honed his listening talents so much that he heard and recognized God’s words constantly. No wonder “all Israel from Dan even to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord” (1 Sam 3:20)!

Some of us may be tempted to think, “God never speaks to me,” or, “I could never be like Samuel.” But what do the scriptures teach us? We can learn from James 1:5-6:

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

“But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering[.]”

God has promised to freely give revelation to any of us who has faith. Granted, it must be complete faith, which includes a willingness to keep God’s commandments. But if we are worthy of the Spirit and believe God will speak to us, then He will. The trick is recognizing the Lord’s voice from the many other voices in this world. Even Samuel had to practice at that before getting good at it—so will we. But that kind of practice will bring us joy as well as the answers we seek.

But what comes next? What are we to do when we receive inspiration from God? Again, we can look to Samuel as an example. Unfortunately, much of what he heard from God was troubling at best and terrible news at worst; many of the people around Samuel were living wickedly and needed to change. Most of us will probably never be asked to call an entire nation to repentance like Samuel was, but we’ve already been asked to not soften or twist God’s doctrine in order to satisfy people. We must be willing to live and share the truth no matter what.

But what can we do when people reject our beliefs or even our friendship? Like Samuel, we can always do at least two things: pray for our loved ones and thank God for our blessings. When others see that we truly care about them and hear us credit God for the goodness in our lives, they will be more likely to have open hearts and listening ears. And, if nothing else, doing those things will continue to help us hear God’s word in our own lives.

So the next time you feel that God isn’t speaking to you, remember Samuel. Invite the Spirit, ask for help, and listen closely. Act on any good thought with faith that it is from God. And when you realize, maybe even years later, that it was indeed God speaking to you, be sure to thank Him for His help.