I Samuel 3- I hear, the secrets that You keep....when Your talking in *my* Sleep

 
Read 1 Samuel 3 , then come back :)
1 Samuel 3:1 Now the boy Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation.

That verse literally brought tears to my eyes. Because I know how I need and am refreshed and renewed by the Word of the God. I know how nothing, brings me back to truth like thee truth. I know how even if I have gone too long without opening up my Bible to read, I can pick right back up where we left off and hear His voice, in my soul. So picturing a time where His words were rare. That is heavy. 

The next story is a story I heard a hundred times growing up.  


² And it came to pass at that time, while Eli was lying down in his place, and when his eyes had begun to grow so dim that he could not see, ³ and before the lamp of God went out in the tabernacle of the Lord where the ark of God was, and while Samuel was lying down, ⁴ that the Lord called Samuel. And he answered, “Here I am!” ⁵ So he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.”
And he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” And he went and lay down.

This scenario plays out a couple more times until Eli gets smart and realizes it is the voice of The Lord  and tells Samuel that the next time he hears his name, to answer "Speak: for your servant hears."

 Growing up, every time one of us thought we heard our mom calling us, but she hadn't called  us, she would tell us to go back and  say "speak: for your servant hears"!!! Every.time. :) So I am very familiar with this story!

So Samuel follows Eli's instructions, and subsequently hears from God himself, which we already learned was rare! And the message is not good news for his boss, Eli.  God told Samuel that Eli, and his house, would be punished for the sins he knew about, committed by his son's, who went unrestrained.

Then this scene. Disclaimer: I don't know what it is, but lately in my life I can almost see the scenes unfolding like a movie,  in my head, but when I read this next bit the first time through it seemed like a just a conversation. But the second time I really read it, noticing the wording,  I realized this was a desperate,  plea, from an old man, who had had also heard from the Lord, and what he heard was not good. (I Samuel 2:34) He was in trouble, and I would imagine he hadn't slept much since the last time he heard from God. This was no ordinary "Hey, so what did God say last night?" No, instead, picture the veins bulging on Eli's forehead, and the urgency in his request that would not be denied.

 
¹⁷ And he said, “What is the word that the Lord spoke to you? Please do not hide it from me. God do so to you, and more also, if you hide anything from me of all the things that He said to you.” ¹⁸ Then Samuel told him everything, and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let Him do what seems good to Him.”

This chapter has about 101 different lessons in it! Wow! But in my life, right now, I can relate with Samuel's fear.  
 ⁵ So Samuel lay down until morning, and opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell Eli the vision.

 Can you relate with fearing what the reaction will be if you share the "Word of the Lord"?  Eli's reaction was quite unpredictable. But Samuel's obedience was not optional. And it is our responsibility to share the God's truth, regardless of the reaction.  These days our society is based on shifting sands. But we must build our faith on a Rock. The Rock. You have to listen to this song by Sara Groves. 
 "We've had every conversation in the world....but have I mentioned to you that this is all that I am.....this is all that i have..Somewhere somehow this subject became taboo, I have no other way to communicate to you...that is all that I am, this all that I have.... I would like to share with you, what makes me complete, I don't claim to have found the truth, but I know it has found me, The only thing that isn't meaningless to me, is Jesus Christ and the way He set me free......

What part of God's character do you see in this passage?  
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