Tag Archives: Responding to God’s Call

Answering a Call

Living in the Spirit

June 29, 2020

Scripture Reading:
Genesis 24:34-67

Then I bowed my head and worshipped the Lord, and blessed the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me by the right way to obtain the daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son. Now then, if you will deal loyally and truly with my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so that I may turn either to the right hand or to the left.’ And they called Rebekah, and said to her, ‘Will you go with this man?’ She said, ‘I will.’ So they sent away their sister Rebekah and her nurse along with Abraham’s servant and his men. And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,
‘May you, our sister, become
   thousands of myriads;
may your offspring gain possession
   of the gates of their foes.’
Then Rebekah and her maids rose up, mounted the camels, and followed the man; thus the servant took Rebekah, and went his way. –Genesis 24:40-49, 58-61

As a child, I had a little golden book that told this story with pictures and words. It was like a fairy tale, and I enjoyed reading it over and over again. I now know this was a story from an ancient culture that followed customs that are foreign to our society today, although some things never change. No one wants their children to marry the wrong kind of person. Our definition of who that wrong kind of person is has changed markedly.

I am impressed that Rebekah apparently had a choice as to whether she would go. Years ago, I received a telephone call from the state office of the agency where I worked, asking me if I would be interested in transferring to a job in another town. I said, let me think about it. They said we need to know today. I went on a coffee break with a friend, and we tossed around the pros and cons. I returned to the office called them back and said I would take the transfer, and their response was I should report to duty tomorrow and stop by the state office to pick up the name badge I would need, which was apparently already made. I have always wondered if I really had a choice. I wonder if that was the kind of choice Rebekah had. My job change was one of the best decisions I ever made. I think Rebekah probably felt the same about her decision.

I read somewhere recently that the Spirit of God was a wind, not a wall. It flows in and around and through us as it does through all God’s people working to bring the Body of Christ into oneness. We are called to catch the wind and fulfill our contribution to creating a world ruled by love.

Prayer: Lord, give us the discernment to recognize the Spirit’s workings and help us be ready to go where the Spirit leads us. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Here I Am, Lord

Ordinary Time
January 8, 2018

Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 3:1-20

Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.

At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his room; the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ and he said, ‘Here I am!’ and ran to Eli, and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ But he said, ‘I did not call; lie down again.’ So he went and lay down. The Lord called again, ‘Samuel!’ Samuel got up and went to Eli, and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ But he said, ‘I did not call, my son; lie down again.’ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. The Lord called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli, and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, ‘Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” ’ So Samuel went and lay down in his place. –1 Samuel 3:1-9

There is a difference in hearing the call and responding to the call. One thing is sure God calls all of God’s followers. When I first participated in my church, a  90-something woman in my church prepared the communion trays each week filling little individual glass cups with grape juice before worship and carefully washing them and storing them after worship for the next use. She lived four or five blocks from the church and, rain or shine would walk to the church on Fridays to prepare communion and return on Mondays to clean those cups. It was her calling, and she did it faithfully for years. We had to switch to plastic throw-away cups when she died. No one else was willing to do the tedious cleaning. I doubt her call was very dramatic, but it was something she could do at that age and stage of her life, and so she did.

Samuel’s call was more dramatic than our cup washer’s as was Paul’s, both callings so outstanding they merited Biblical documentation. Our callings are more likely to be similar to the cup washer’s. We may have a shining outstanding moment in our faith history, but most of our work is the persistent pursuit of the will of God whether supporting weekly worship or ministering to the whole nation of Israel or taking the Good News of Christ to the gentile world.  One of Eli’s last responses to God enabled God’s new servant to hear and respond to his call.

Prayer: Here I am, Lord. Is it I Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me.
I will hold your people in my heart.* Amen

Refrain from Here I am, Lord words by Dan Schutte see at https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-here-i-am-lord

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Response

ShelterEastertide
April 25, 2016

Scripture Reading: Acts 16:9-15

During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’ When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.
–Acts 16:9-10

When do we trust our guts? When do take a dream or vison seriously? I score very high on the Myers Briggs personality type scale as being intuitive. I also score somewhat high on being a thinking person. Those two types find themselves in conflict at times. I over analyze my intuition. It is thus interesting to me the few times I never question my gut and act immediately upon what it is calling me to do. I sense that is what Paul did regarding his call to Macedonia.

Many years ago I took a sabbatical retreat wandering to and along the east coast in search of myself and my ancestry. In my planning ahead, I booked a stay at a bed and breakfast in the Poconos area of Pennsylvania. This part of my retreat was to be my quiet reflective time. I was definitely not pleased when I was assigned to a huge room with sleeping arrangements for five people, but decided to make the best of it. Then a large multigenerational family checked in across the hall and made the normal noise that any large multigenerational family would make. Thus I might have left the next day anyway. After the family had apparently headed out for an adventure and it was very quiet, I had the most urgent sense that I needed to leave there immediately. The keeper of the B and B was not home. I left a note on her table with a cash payment for the night and left. Driving west on highway 70 without stopping until I realized that it was getting dark, I began to look for a motel, found one, checked in, and then tried to analyze what I had just done. It made no sense to me and still doesn’t but I assure you I would do the same thing again. I think it had more to do with God working with me throughout the whole trip, granting me the peace I needed, and saying now get off your duff and get back to it. We do need to pay attention to those calls.

Prayer: Lord, I thank you for being my shelter in the storms of life when shelter is what I need and I thank you for pushing me back out into the wind and the rain when that is what you need. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized 
Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council 
of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights 
reserved.