“Speak, Lord. Your servant is listening.” ~ 1 Samuel 3:10. 

“Speak Lord! Your servant is listing!” In the first reading this past Sunday, we learn that Samuel could not recognize the voice of God. He heard his name called in the night and assumed it was his teacher, Eli. As Eli explained to him, it was God calling to him.

So many people I know are waiting on a sign from God. When they want to make a big change, they look for a sign. As they discern jobs and relationships, they are looking for signs from God. The truth is, God does not necessarily send a profound sign to direct us. We are not going to obviously hear His voice telling us what to do. Even if we do, we may not recognize it as Him.

Why does Eli know God is speaking?

Like Samuel, many of us need to be told God has sent His sign or spoken to us. Why does Eli know the voice is God and Samuel does not? Though Eli does not hear the voice, he has learned how to look and listen for God. He has learned to say, “Speak, Lord. Your servant is listening.”

All of us at some time or another will not recognize the voice of God. We will endure spiritual droughts and times of agony as we feel distant from Him. When those times come, we need a friend to recognize the voice of God for us.

This is one of many reasons it is important to choose a spouse who knows God’s voice. 

Our primary job as spouses is to help each other get to Heaven. Even if we cannot maintain a prayer routine for ourselves, we need to keep it for our spouse. We must be able to know the voice of God so we can hear it when our spouse is deaf. Our spouse must know the voice of God to hear Him when we are broken.

If you are navigating a spiritual storm or a distance from God, stop speaking. Go to prayer in silence. Make no requests. Share no complaints. Simply say, “Speak, Lord. Your servant is listening.” Learn how to hear the voice of God.