Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 3-7

I find it sad to read “In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions”. The Israelites were so bad and so down that they cannot even hear the Lord. It must be really dark and sad without the presence of the Lord.

Then, when the Lord spoke to Samuel, he dealt with Eli and his sons. I note “I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about…. he failed to restrain them” Even though Eli did not directly and actively sin against the Lord, he knew of the sin of his sons and he did not restrain them – that’s why the Lord will not forgive his FAMILY or the his HOUSE. That’s pretty severe and scary. When Eli heard it from Samuel, he accepts such decision “He is the Lord; let him do what is good in his eyes.”

Finally, I find interesting that the Philistines knew about the Lord – “They are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the desert”. The Israelites forgot about God, but these foreigners remember what the Lord had done for the Israelites. Now, that’s sad. It is so just that the Israelites were defeated.

Let’s bring these into our lives today. Do you hear God? Is there a sin you know about and you are not doing anything about in your family? Finally, do you remember God this morning? If you answer “no” to any of these three questions, let’s remember him by reading the Bible and spending some time with Him – yes, you can do it by not watching your favourite TV show tonight, by not cleaning your house sparkly, or by not spending your time on internet surfing or gaming. Yes, you can set aside 15 min today to have good conversation with God today.