God's Calling

 

Yesterday, we listened to and learned from the call of Samuel.  I pray this week you will adopt the prayer posture and practice of every day saying, “Here I am, Lord.  Speak for your servant is listening.”  Then, you will listen.  Remember at first Samuel was confused and baffled.  At first, he thought the voice was Eli, his mentor and boss and leader of the synagogue.  This is an important detail to dwell with today because, for me, I can mistake and mishear and misunderstand God’s voice in my life.

How?  I am so glad you asked.

Sometimes we miss God’s movement in our midst because we are too busy.  Busy physically racing and running around.  Busy mentally trying to process all the words we encounter and experience.  There is some much information to consume and that can consume us!  Busy spiritually.  We believe the lie that taking time for ourselves to be with God is selfish.  Self-care is caring for the image of God in which you are still be created.  I write that because I still need to practice with this in my life. Dallas Willard said that hurry was, “the great enemy of spiritual life in our day,” and urged followers of Jesus to “ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.”  Don’t just think of hurry in terms of perpetual physical motion.  Our minds can be overwhelmed and darting different directions; our souls sagged down with stress and strain and still pushing for more.  Where do you need to clear the chaos and clutter in your life so you can listen to God, for God, and with God?

1 Samuel says that the word of the Lord was rare.  We can get out of practice listening for God’s presence.  I believe God’s voice can sometimes sound like comfort and care, especially when we are hurting.  Sometimes the holy hum is more challenging and convicting from someone who I struggle to love.  Sometimes the Spirit hovers and hangs silently in our lives; not so much with instructions or a series of steps to achieve but with a reassurance and reminder of who we are.  We need to exercise the Spiritual muscle of sitting silently with the Sacred.

It can be easy to want to go down every rabbit hole or chase every waterfall.  We can be lured by the bright and shiny and new.  Or someone tells us we have to/ought to/need to do something and we think, “I guess that could be God’s voice, so I guess I better go after that idea just to be safe.”  What if, rather than racing and running; chasing chaotically; you paused.  My hunch is God will understand if you check with God to be clear this is God’s call.  Of what if you talked to a trusted friend or mentor about the various directions you feel tugged toward?

Sometimes we have a clear sense of where we are being called.  I am grateful for Samuel’s confusion, because I am often baffled and bewildered and betwixt and between lots of different (competing) calls for my energy.  I need moments of holy pause, sacred silence, to let God’s wisdom to take my life and let it be guided by grace and love and unity. 

Prayer: Still speaking and singing and swirling God, cut through the clutter and chaos this day helping me center down in Your presence and letting You get a word in edgewise.  Amen.