What we do in life echoes in eternity

"Speak, Lord, for your slave is listening."
- 1 Samuel 3:9-10

Prayer.  Its an interesting concept, or maybe a misunderstood concept, most likely both.  Its Power is not something that we will ever be able to fully wrap our heads around.  The whole of the New Testament does not emphasize prayer as much as the Old Testament, in and of itself this is not a bad thing, but in the modern "biblical" church in America this results in a significant problem.  The Old Testament is often times left out, and so people dont always get the full picture of God's story, we don't get insights into prayer that are so prevalent in the Old Testament. The Old Testament is full of different conversations that people have with God, yes conversations.  These are moments of prayer, images of how to communicate with God.

Often times it is God who attempts to initiate with us, but for a myriad of different reasons we do not here him or we do not.  To us prayer is telling God what we think we need and want and then expecting God to take care of everything.  No interest in a real relationship, just benefits of one. What if we treated our spouse this way? Unfortunately some do.  No relationship, just fulfillment of needs and wants; food, clothing, shelter, transportation.  And too self absorbed to see the situation for what it really is, not a relationship, a parasite. We lach on to God and we take and take and take, and there is no give back.

What if instead we responded to God, and treated prayer like Eli instructs Samuel to do in 1 Samuel 3.  Samuel is asleep and keeps hearing his name called so he keeps going to Eli, Eli is not calling but realizes it is God.  So Eli tells Samuel to respond "Speak, Lord, your slave is listening."  What a response. The craziest part?

He meant it.

Acted upon it.

Lived every day with that mentality.

So, God used him.  In big ways for His Kingdom.  Samuel is one of the most prominent Prophets.  All because he listened first. He chose to respond. Acted in accordance with God's will. Freely chose to be a slave.

Prayer is a conversation, it is communication.  And the most important piece to communication is not talking, it is listening.  Which quality do you desire in a spouse and friends?  A good talker or a good listener? We are created that way, and we are created in God's image. We are created to be good listeners, all of us, we just need to choose to be good listeners to God. And to those around us.

We must be still, and know that he is God.  Because God as powerful and great as he is, doesn't always speak in a thunderous voice, it isn't always the raging storm where he is heard.  Often it is in the quietness, in the sound of silence that comes after the storm where God speaks.

Will you choose to hear him?  Will you respond?

“Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. ¹² And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. ¹³ When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.
   And a voice said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
- 1 Kings 19:11-13