1 Samuel 3: Midnight Encounter with God

Background of these 1 Samuel posts: I'm reading through 1 Samuel with Cory and Kelli, my small group leader and helper, over the summer to prepare ourselves for small group Bible studies this next semester. We read two chapters a week, and this week, we read 1 Samuel 3 and 4.

Yesterday, life took a difficult turn. I went to bed disappointed, a bit sad, and very anxious. I normally fall asleep immediately, but not surprisingly, it took me a little longer than usual to fall asleep. The strange thing is that I woke up in the middle of the night, which never ever happens, thinking and worrying about life. I tried to pray about it, but it was difficult letting go and giving everything over to God. Like Samuel, God spoke to me, lying in bed in the middle of the night. God told me: "You can either trust me or not trust me. You decide." As Christians, we often create little grey areas for ourselves to justify and rationalize our doubts and selfishness, but when God puts it in those terms, I have no choice but to respond by putting my trust in Him.

God has taught me a lot about trusting him these past years. Recognizing God's sovereignty and love has been a constant encouragement that as long as I remain in Him by obeying his commands, God's will is done in my life, and I can be confident that his will in my life will always be the best for me. Trusting in God has given me unparalleled peace, even in the worst circumstances. It also seems like whenever I get closer to God, my circumstances become terrible. Though I'm confused by this, I press on in the knowledge and hope that God is always working for my good and has plans only to prosper me.

Like Samuel, God has been speaking to me recently in many different ways. Reading the Word has been extremely fruitful, as God is giving me passages that really relate to my life and is opening my eyes to the things he wants me to see. Here are some verses that God has given me today:

Proverbs 13:12 (NKJV)

Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life

Jonah 4:9-10 (NIV)

But God said to Jonah, "Do you have a right to be angry about the vine?"
"I do," he said. "I am angry enough to die."
But the LORD said, "You have been concerned about this vine, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. 

Job 1:20 (NIV)

The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away;
may the name of the LORD be praised."