Scripture:

1 Samuel 3:1-2, 7, 21

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. 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,

7 (Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, nor was the word of the Lord yet revealed to him.)

21 Then the Lord appeared again in Shiloh. For the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the Lord.

"When the Lord is SIlent"

We always have to examine ourselves and the times we are in when the Lord is silent, now sometimes that silence is God working in the background, testing us, causing us to operate in faith, but here we see that Eli's dim eyes and ears that were not sensitive to the Lord at this time were in direct correlation to his disobedience, in not doing something about his sons or restraining their wickedness.   Isaiah 59:2 says it is our sin that separates us from God.   And ti had done that with Eli.   

But God was raising up a faithful priest and prophet, in fact one of the greatest of them Samuel.  But I want to note a few things about Samuels life that even before he was born even conceived his mother had dedicated him to the LORD.   Something to grasp here is our giving ourselves over to the LORD, our dedication of our lives our FULL commitment can transform our future, the future of our family, the future of the world we directly live and influence. 

Application:

A few things to apply here, always choose the LORD, do not allow sin to continue in your house, when you are aware of it, put a stop to it, correct it so the LORD does not have to, give yourself over to the LORD completely, and teach your children to do the same, speak over their lives, dedicate them early, everyday water them with the word, teach them to listen to the LORD.

May the WORD of the LORD be HEARD in our day, may we not tolerate sin of disobedience, may we not allow it in our homes, may we always pursue the LORD keep His word, and may His voice be full in our ears, may we be attentive to His leading, and take His direction in all that we do and plan to do, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Judges 21:25

25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

"In those days there was no king in Israel."  300 years later, the Lord would tell Samuel that when Israel asked for a King, "they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me."  I think it is important that we understand the context of this verse.   There are two things here: first, that they had rejected the Lord as their King, and the second thing is that they had become self-reliant, thinking that they did not need the Lord.

Things always go wrong when we start thinking we don't need God.   This is why, when things are good, we have to guard our relationship with God, because we begin to think we don't need Him. Always be concerned when you begin to do what is right in your own eyes, instead of seeking the Lord's direction for your life.  Proverbs says that it ends badly, and it always did for Israel.

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death"  ~Proverbs 14:12

To seek the Lord, His leadership, to look at the book of Judges as a reminder that when things get good, don't lose our dependence on the Lord, rely on Him, trust in Him, be God-Reliant instead of Self-Reliant.   Keep God at the center of your life, and life will be better.

Lord, may we always keep you as the King of our lives, that we would not lose sight of your presence in our lives, when things get good, we would not grow distant from you, we would not think life is good I don't need Him, but they we would always be desperate for your presence, seeking you in all that we are and do, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Judges 16:20

20 Then she called, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!”
He awoke from his sleep and thought, “I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.

"A Slow Fade"

Like the Casting Crowns' song, Samson had begun a slow fade; he had created distance between himself and the Lord and, slowly, with his choices, was removing himself from covenant with the Lord, from the Lord's covering.  Samson was not watchful, careful with his calling and his decisions as they were dragging him away. 1 Peter 5:8 reminds us that we must be watchful, the enemy is looking for those whom he can devour and destroy.

Fix our eyes on Jesus, to keep our hearts close to Him, the Bible says we must guard our hearts above all else.   The story of Samson is a reminder that we must be careful chasing our desires, be watchful, for Samson, the enemy was in his camp, and by the time he realized it, it was too late. 

Two things:

Our decisions could lead us away from the Lord, or toward Him; we must be careful in them.

Be careful of the people you allow in your life, because not everyone is going in the direction God has for you. 

Lord, I pray that we look at Samson's life and realize the importance of staying in covenant with you, staying in close proximity to you, in relationship with you, to guard our distance, to guard our hearts, and to guard what influences we let in our houses.   What we allow in the gates of our life, they have access to us. Lord, let it be filled only with those things you have provided, those things you have planned for us, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Judges 14:9

 9 He scooped out the honey with his hands and ate as he went along. When he rejoined his parents, he gave them some, and they too ate it. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey from the lion’s carcass.

Samson, one of the most detailed stories in the Book of Judges, and sort of superhero with superhuman strength.   But one thing you should catch is that his character is not all that good.   It is evidence that God can use imperfect people, even people who are out of alignment, and this verse shows you the beginning of the decline for Samson.   See, Samson is a Nazarite, and the requirements for a Nazarite from conception must not touch anything from the vine; even his mother during pregnancy was to abstain.   He was not to cut his hair or touch dead bodies.  Yet here we see him kill and then later touch the carcus of the dead lion and give the honey to his parents. 

See, our drifting away from the Lord and His requirements is not something we do or even see all at once; it is a slow drift, it is subtle decisions that lead us away.

The application today is to guard our relationship with the Lord, to look out for the little compromises in our lives and to put a stop to the bleed, to really be away of our walk to guard our hearts, our minds, what we hear, what we speak and of course what we do. to be careful to prioritize our walk with the Lord.

Lord, show us the cracks in our walks, the weak spots in our walk so that we would not fall away, that we would not discover our relationship had deteriorated and slip away from you.   Keep us in close proximity to you that we may hear your voice clearly, that we may walk in your ways carefully, that we might honor you with our lives, in Jesus' name, Amen!