God’s calling

He is Calling Twice

/ pastorpete51 / 7 Comments

I have always been intrigued at the times when God called people twice. The first I find is with Abraham, after by faith he had prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac on the altar, and God sent an angel to stop him, “Abraham, Abraham!”. (Genesis 22:11). Because Abraham trusted God, God called him to a deep friendship, and later, the Bible tells us that, Abraham was called, “The friend of God” (James 2:22; Isaiah 41:8)

Four hundred years passed till Moses became the second one called twice. While he was watching sheep, he noticed in the distance a bush on fire, but not burning up. When he came closer to see it, Moses heard God calling. “Moses, Moses, and he said, ‘Here I am,” Moses didn’t know what God’s calling meant, but he trusted God and made himself available.

The third person we meet is a young boy named Samuel. God came in the middle of the night; not because of anything special that Samuel had done, but because he had been dedicated from birth by his mother to God, and he had become a servant to the priest. “And the Lord came and stood calling, as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel! And Samuel said, “speak for your servant is listening.” Though Samuel’s call originated in his mother’s faith, God’s purpose for Samuel could only be fulfilled by Samuel’s own response. Samuel listened to hear what God had for him to do.

The last person we find with that double calling, lived almost a thousand years later, and her name was Martha. “But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha! Martha! You are anxious and troubled about many things, “Luke 10:41 The Bible later tells us that Jesus loved Martha, as he also loved Mary who sat at his feet and Lazarus, whom he raised from the dead, (John 11:5) God called Abraham, tested his faith, and called him a friend, He loved Moses, and called him to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. God loved the young boy Samuel, even before He knew Him, and He loved Martha, who was so busy serving that she hadn’t taken time to listen. And just as God loved each of these very ordinary people, He also loves you and me. He calls us like Abraham to be a friend. He also calls us like Moses, to be used to rescue others. He calls in the middle of the night, like Samuel, even before we know Him, and He calls us like Martha, even when we aren’t listening. He loves us and is calling us to trust Him when we can’t understand, to come closer to His presence, to wake up to service, and yet also slow down, take a seat, and listen. Which of these calls is He calling you to today?

Prayer: Father God, I am here, unworthy of your calling, yet I really want to know you, to obey your will, and to learn what it means to be your friend!

He Still Comes

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment 
And the Lord came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth. 1 Samuel 3:10 KJV

I once spent two years commuting two hours each way to my job. Since it was so far, I spent the week with friends in one state, while my wife and our two children lived in another. At first, I hardly noticed, but the pressure was taking its toll. Some mornings I would wake up, wondering where I was and spiritually, I was growing distant from God. Without God’s grace and my wife’s patience and prayers we would not have made it through. During that time, I often felt as if God was so far away that I could never get back to Him. Then one afternoon as I was driving home and listening to a message on Christian radio, my heart was so moved that unexpected tears began to flow down my cheeks. In that moment it felt as if Jesus had just opened the door of my pickup truck and slid into the passenger seat.

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Though my situation was different than Samuel’s, it is interesting that, like me Samuel was outwardly fulfilling his duties, but the Bible tells us that in spite of all he was doing right, he still didn’t know the Lord. Yet despite him being the unlikeliest of candidates, God chose Samuel to be a prophet. Notice, it doesn’t say that “Samuel was praying.” Or that “Samuel had some burning desire to hear from God.” No, Samuel was sound asleep, and God just came! That should give us all hope, because no matter who we are or what our circumstances we are in, God can also come for us. When He does, like Samuel we need to answer and tell Him, “Lord we are listening. Thank you for remembering me!”

Will You Answer That?

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I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility, gentleness and patience, bearing with one another in love. Ephesians 4:1-2 ESV

When our cell phone rings, it is common for us to look at the number and decide whether to pick the call, reject it or just let it go to voice mail. But when I was a kid, a phone call was actually quite an event. Our only phone hung on the wall in the kitchen, and if it rang when mom had her hands in the dishwater, she would yell out, “Will somebody answer that please!” Then either my sister or I would run to pick it up. In those days, we couldn’t just say, “Hello!” Instead, we had to begin by saying, “This is the Jones residence; may I help you please?”

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The Bible tells us about the most important call of all: the one from God. Some of us may be letting God’s call go through to voice mail because we are afraid of what we think He is planning. We picture being sent off to some scary place overseas or emptying our bank account to help the poor. But we are missing what God’s call is about. Today’s verse tells us that He is far more interested in who we are than in what we do. So, go ahead. Be brave. Pick up the phone because you just may discover that God is calling for us to be humble in how we think of ourselves and gentle in how we treat others. We also may find out He is asking us to be patient when things don’t happen as quickly as we hoped (which is often) and loving forbearance when people fail us. And with all the callings and messages we are hearing it is most important of all to remember that everything God asks of us, He has already done when He picked up His phone and answered our call for mercy!