WHOA!

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." -Philippians 4:6

I just wanna share a brief testimony of God's goodness. So here it is...(be ready to say "whoaaa!" with me)

Honestly, It's been almost three months of waiting for the result of the Licensure Examination for Teachers (LET) that I took last September 27,2015. Most of the time, I pray. I unceasingly pray to God: "Lord, You know the desires of my heart...I wanna pass the LET." Whenever I wake up,before I sleep...in the middle of the day or night,every minute, every second...even as I wash the dishes or whatever I do, I offer a prayer - spoken and unspoken. I am a worrier...impatient. anxious. I get so stressed with a lot of "ifs" and thoughts of "How if I fail the board exam?". That is my weakness.But I know that my God is very personal that He even lives inside of me, He knows our everything! And He loves to be with us in times of doubt,fear and disbelief. How awesome it is that God,despite of my lack of trust in Him...remains to be gracious,loving,faithful and so on.Whoa!

He has given me a lot of encouragements and affirmations to always remind me to wait and TO HOLD ON TO HIM. He has used people,scripture, signages/posters and even songs to minister/speak to me. God is indeed moving!!

As the day of releasing the results drew closer, my heart literally beats faster and faster to the point that whenever the fan page of PRC posts something, I feel like having a minor heart attack! Hahaha! It was actually postponed many times. So, I got bored...but yesterday, Instead of being worried (to the maximum level),I decided to attend Jesus Reigns Celebration (a simultaneous worship gathering of 82 provinces here in the Philippines) in Melvin Jones grounds. I never expected to meet my high school friend Narie there. As the worship went by, leading to the holy communion...My phone vibrated with messages of "congratulations", "you passed" and other greetings! I don't know how to express my feelings that time. I was literally speechless!! But I immediately called my mom to verify my name in the website (since I have no internet connection) and tadaaaaah! My name was really there! Whew!

Since, at that moment...we are about to partake of the holy communion, I set aside my phone...Enjoying the "present moment" to just remember and thank my Savior and Lord for His great blessing. What a memorable time to be at His Table. Whoooooa.

My mom called and resquested me to come home right away to celebrate my success with my family. I bought ice cream and they ordered pizza. (*insert the adrenaline rush of looking for a cab here*) When I got home, we lifted our unending thanksgivingin prayer. Hallelu Yah!!

I ended the day last night by lighting a candle in my room and just offering a silent thanksgiving and adoration to Abba,Jesus and Holy Spirit. Amen!

Thanks to my family,my prayer partners,encouragers and those who sent some greetings! Blessings to you all as well! - you are all my inspiration!

H E A D - what I am thinking right now.

Birthday. Oathtaking. Testimonial Dinner. Holiday trips. Christmas parties. Starbucks cheer party. Christmas bazzars. Advent. Job hunting/work opportunities.

H E A R T - what I feel.

I'm feelin' happy. thankful. amazed. I AM FEELING THE MOMENT!

H A N D S - what I find doing. 

I am starting to finish this Christmas Party program for our church this year. I so love doing this!

JUSTINE PAOLO G, PARCASIO
Professional Teacher

To God be all the praise,honor and glory! Amen!

EAGLE

"Even youths grow tired and weary,

and young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the LORD

will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint." - Isaiah 40:30-31 NIV

This verse just started to minister to me tonight...and yes, we get tired and worn-out of things every now and then. May that be physically, emotionally, and even spiritually. But what is good about this verse is that it doesn't stop there...it continues with "but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength..." (v. 31a). How assuring and comforting it is that no matter how much heavy our baggage that we carry, we can put our full hope in the LORD...who, Himself can feel what we can feel and even knows exactly how heavy and hard the problems,trials and issues that we have. As Jesus, who is both God and Man, came to be here with us and be like us in our "humanity" even to the point of death on the old-rugged cross.He carried our EVERYTHING - pains, problems, issues, brokenness, sin, infirmities, sickness, evil, hurts, flesh...our everything.

Like a mighty eagle, spread your wings...fly higher...being assured that it is the strength of Jesus that we hold on to...

 H E A D - what I am thinking right now.

I am anxious about things (and I must confess, I am a worrier but I believe that God is helping me with this)...one of the things that bothers me is the result of my Licensure Examination for Teachers (LET). It is expected to be released in November 27,2015...Oh! how hard it is to W A I T in confidence!!!! As I always say...I will wait in expectancy!

H E A R T - what I feel.

I'm feelin' sad...(sadness that can be rooted with being) guilty of the things that I am expected be doing but I fail to do.

H A N D S - what I find doing.

 I just want to have a cup of hot venti-sized hibiscus tea at Starbucks and just be alone with my bible and journal. And maybe answer the questionnaire that I need to accomplish ASAP. I am planning to do these tomorrow.

HEAD. HEART. HANDS.

Hey! How are you guys?

I have a lot of things in my THOUGHTS,things that I FEEL, and things that I wanna DO as of this very moment that are needed to be expressed thru writing.

By the way, I am changing my manner of writing...I came with these three basic themes:

• HEAD - what I am thinking.
• HEART - what I feel.
• HANDS - what I find doing. 

...you will definitely see these themes always.

Aside from that, I find it helpful to express myself using the languages that I could understand and speak - english,filipino and ilocano. Don't worry...I will be translating some for those who can't understand filipino and ilocano.

I am not really a writer. I'm not good in grammar. I'm bad in vocabulary. BUT, I am trying....

bare with me...
teach me...
journey with me...

Thank you!

NEW THING

Finally! After 2 months of not blogging...I decided to share something with you in writing, things that I've been doing months after my graduation. Actually I've been busy doing things here at home (and I'm really enjoying it). I have decided not to teach yet or look for a job but instead, focus on reviewing for the Licensure Examination for Teachers this coming September 27,2015. And also participate in the workshops of Transforming Prayer and Spiritual Direction facilitated by Dr. Rey Taniajura, the representative of Odyssey in Christ here in the Philippines.

Since most of the time, I am here at home, I have all the time to clean,cook,laundry and do the things that I want to do. In fact, I tried something new, I found an old set of watercolor paint and couple of paint brushes. And tadaaaaaaaah...the artistic side of me was activated! Imagine,I painted 11 simple paintings?! (Haha!) here is one of my favorite paintings:

I am very thankful to my mama and papa for allowing me to attend 2 christian concerts, Hillsong Worship live in MOA Arena last April and Planetshakers live in Areneta Coliseum 2 weeks ago (my sister Jana wasn't able join us because of her classes). I will never forget this because they even filed a leave just to travel and attend the worship concerts with me. I am forever grateful for their love for me and providing, not only the things that I need but sometimes, also the things that I want. I love you FOREVER!

There are still a lot of activities that are yet to come...

Everybody's excited for the annual GCI Worship Festival 2015 of our church happening on September 23-27, Teacher's Camp, Baguio City with the theme: "Celebrating Kingdom Life Now!". Preparations are in full swing,for our local church,we have started to practice as a music team because will be leading the opening night service and we will be performing in the Unified 2 concert! Yay!

Here are some of the activities that I am looking forward to:

-OIC Deeper Walk and Spiritual Direction in Leadership Seminar (September 15-17 in CDC,Tagaytay City)

-OIC Experiencing The Trinity Retreat (September 19-22 in Ating Tahanan,GSP,Baguio City)

-Bethel Music Live in Manila Concert (October 17 in Araneta Coliseum,Manila)

PS.May I ask you all to pray for me as I continue to review and prepare myself for the LET this September. Shalom!

LIVE THE LIFE

It's been 4 months of not blogging but...I think this one is worth blogging!

Right after the Summer Enrichment Camp (SEP) Luzon 2014 of last year, Ptr Aron Tolentino (camp director of this cool youth camp) has been constantly asking me to serve as an assistant counselor again next year (referring to this year) but all my answers were neutral, knowing that I might not be able to serve again because of some post-graduation considerations like applying for a job. I prayed for God's leading because I would really would want to serve and be part of this annual summer camp knowing that this will make an impact in the lives of the young people since I have experienced and attended SEP for 7 consecutive years. My heart and my passion is really for the youth ministry. I must say that, every year, there were a lot of new learnings,friendships and experiences with God. 

April, the month of applying for staffhood, I finally took the leap of faith in applying for the assistant counselor. It was my second time if ever to serve in this position. My application was accepted! With great joy and expectation, I was excited. My first year of serving as an assistant counselor (summer of 2014) was very memorable, having the opportunity to be mentored by kuya Al Santillian...I will be forever grateful for the things you have taught me!(one of the things that I did with kuya Al was to pray for each of the campers intentionally). This is one of the reasons why I am encouraged to serve again. Weeks passed by and I received a text informing me that my counselor to whomI will be working with,is kuya Adriel Garcia. We started planning via sms and facebook chats, a lot of idea-storming! Finally we decided to stick with the identity of our dorm 2B, to be "DUGONG BUGHAW" (royal blood). Choosing this dorm identity in relation that this is who we are in Christ - our King and this is the life/reality that we should live. We also had the idea of looking for neckties to match this theme. We were blessed that We have found some neckties in an affordable price (we gave each of our 14 campers each upon thier arrival). 

This year, the camp was held in a new site in Matabungkay Beach Resort,Lian Batangas last May 25-30. With beautiful dormitories and facilities. A new kind of SEP because it is by the beach. The first day of camp finally came! Excitement to the maximum level was felt! As I have been meeting the campers that was assigned to our dorm, I tried to know them right away and to start the hype to keep them going! What's unique this year was that almost majority of the campers were first timers. During the first few hours and days, kuya Adriel and I were amazed that our campers were easily got along with each other. I specially would like to thank my veteran campers (Erickson,Mann,Julian,Erby,Marthy and Exekiel) for taking the lead in knowing your fellow firstimer dormates and being a "big brother" to them. I super appreciate that!

In our very first meeting as the dorm 2B, we took the time to break the ice, know each other, discuss some dorm rules to guide them and also to assign their buddies for the rest of the camp. The camp was formally opened with a camp worship and a n opening devotional by our camp chaplain, Ptr. Rex. Days were running fast as we enjoyed doing the classes: Basketball,Volleyball,Christian Living,Ballroom,Community Service,Team Building, Swimming (the activity that our dorm was awarded as the "Best Male Dorm in Swimming), Sports Fest (staff vs. campers - staff won of course) and Boating/Snorkling (this is the newest activity in SEP, and I think this is the most enjoyed activity). We had this night of reflection and worship when Ptr. Rex shared the spiritual discipline call the "EXAMEN" - it was a time of refreshing for me. Of course, the Camp won't be complete without the dance night, where all where dressed beautifully and ready to dance with their partners. 

If there is one thing that is very memorable for me this year is the Sunset Worship we had every day in the shore facing the beautiful view of God's creation. It gave me an exceeding joy in reflecting and singing songs of worship with your brothers and sisters during those precious times.

There will always be a time during the camp for the campers to believe and receive God's love in thier lives through water baptism and be witnessed by the SEP community. 16 campers made the decision and was baptized. Hallelujah!

The theme for this year is "LIVE THE LIFE". We have decided to have this tagline for our dorm: "2B, Dugong Bughaw, Everyday Okay!" Knowing that in Christ, the life we should be living is the reality that we are sons and daughters of the King of kings and live as royal bloods (dugong bughaw). And God wants us to live this "life" for ourselves,for God and for others in L-ove,I-inclusion,F-reedom,E-njoyment!

Dearest, pinaka mamahal kong mga brothers,

Halos mag three weeks na tayong di magkakasama! Tuwing Monday, naiisip ko yung alas dos na pumipila kayo to register at pumunta kayo sa dorm assignment niyo (pero alam niyo ba na habang nakapila pa lang kayo, alam ko na na kayo ay dorm 2B? Hehe) Well, trinatry kong alalahanin kung sino sa inyo ang unang dumating sina Jericho, Paolo at Marthy ata kung di ako nagkakamali?? Hehe! Basta yun, nung nasa dorm na tayo unti-unti na tayong nabubuo...ang nakakatawa pa nun eh nagkaroon pa tayo ng ghost dormate...remember "Kenshin" dahil akala natin sa dorm natin siya? Haha. At nung unang pagkikita natin na yun...ang galing! Madaling kayong nagka palagayan ng loob! Salamat kay Mann sa pagtulong saakin sa pag turo na mag tali ng necktie, hey, dapat alam nyo na lahat ah! Kung di niyo pa alam, magpaturo ulit kay Mann! LOL. 

Gusto ko lang magpasalamat sainyo for sharing your stories sa maikling 6 days na yun (ituloy sa txt or chat)...alam ko marami tayong tawa sa mga bagay bagay during cheer practices natin. Ako ay grateful dahil nakita ko sa dorm natin na very talented, may potential, unique, pogi, funny, gentleman at everyday okay! Gusto ko lang kayong isa-isahin at i-affirm kayo:

-Marthy: Pang all star ka talaga brother! Alam mo nung 2013 pa lang nakita ko na yung interest mo sa basketball! Go and enjoyin mo yang hilig na yan, si God ang nagbigay nyan...Tahimik ka nung pagdating mo sa dorm, pero ang appreciate ko sayo ay you shared your ideas sa cheers natin at ang galing mong gumawa nung dialogues nung variety show at wala kang hesitation in doing the things na kailangan mong gawin! Alam ko na one day, you wll be completely healed sa skin asthma mo :) God bless you brother!

-Jericho: Isa ka sa mga nagpapatawa sa ating dorm at nagkwekwento. Appreciate ko sayo na hanggang ngayon nangungumusta ka pa din thru chat and text. Marunong kang makisama sa drom brothers mo. Do your best sa lahat ng bagay kasi dahil dun, makikita nila ang love ni God sayo. Andito lang kami ni kuya Adriel, txt at chat lang brother!

- Nathan: Ang galing at ang astig mo sa bag bebeatbox! Yan ang talent! Thank you sa pagshare mo saakin ng talent na yan...talagang prinapractice mo po ang pagbebeatbox ng gabi! Bigay din ni God yan sayo:) naalala ko, ikaw yung isa sa mga natatawa sa practices na kasabayan ko! Hehe. Na-touch ako nung personal kayong nag sorry saamin ni kuya Adriel sa nagawa niyo na something, you have a good heart! See you soon brother!

-Travis: Brother, tahimik ka ka nung una pero buti na lang at meron si Kenneth na naging best friend mo nung camp. Salamat sa pagshare mo saakin ny life story mo...hayaan mo lang ang mga sinasabi ng tao around you, ang importante ay kung ano ang reality na ikaw ay loved,accepted and valued by God. Smile! And let that smile brighten other's lives.

-Kenneth: Ikaw ang charm ng dorm natin and you are generous sa pag share ng food sa amin. In fact diba twice tayong bumili sa store? Hehe. Noong naguusap tayo habang papunta sa store, I'm asking you kung nageenjoy ka sa camp sabi mo "syempre naman kuya"...kaso medyo nalungkot ka nung baka hindi ka na makaattend next year...wag kang magalala, God will provide ulit and by faith, I know makakattend ka ulit! 

-Darren: Tinatawag mo ako ng "sir" palagi..hehe! Ikaw ang example sa dorm na nakita ko na if time na para mabilisang kailagan nang lumabas for our class, yun. Ikaw yung isa sa mga nauuna. Basta alam ko na basta tahimik, malulupet sila! Be excited sa mga prinipare ng God for your life!

-Cristan: Naaliw ang buong dorm sa mga memes na shinishare mo saamin...hehe! Alam kong in real life, you will also bring joy to the people around you. Nabusog din ang dormates mo dahil sa gabi-gabing pag kain nyo sa baon mo - thanks sa pagshare. Ikaw ay ang pang limang Umlas na naging ka-dorm ko. Astig ka bro!

-Paolo: Brother, alam kong isa sa mga rason kung bakit tayo naging best male dorm sa swimming dahil sayo. Ang galing mo sa swimming! Ipagpatuloy mo yan, malay mo ikaw na pala ang isa sa mga swimmers ng Pilipinas! Be remimded always na God is always for you and not against you!

-Noel: Una tayong nagkakilala nung feast last year ng youth activity. Kaya I thank God dahil nagkita ulit tayo at magkadorm pa. Natutuwa ako kasi very open ka sa pagshare saamin ng mga life experiences and lessons mo. Hindi ka nauubusan ng kwento for us. Thank you sa generous heart mo nung dance night! Kita kits ulit tayo sa feast na ukit siguro?

-Erby: Bro, excited talaga akong maka dorm ka! Alam mo kung bakit? Nung nasa Baguio pa kayo, ikaw kaya yung isa sa mga estudyante namin sa sunday school. Very active ka and you love to play with your fellow kids after service. You have grown up na. Ang bilis ng panahon! Sa dorm natin, na bless ako kasi you harlp being one of the kuya sa mga first timers. Thanks sa merienda nung isang gabi. Hehe! Magiging successful ka sa chosen carrer mo soon. Like you dad! God bless you more brother!

-Julian: Ikaw lang ata ang nagtatawag saakin ng Justine sa dorm? Haha. Well, magkakilala na kasi tayo at mag nakilala pa kita nung camp. Ikaw yung isa sa mga naging kuya ng dorm 2B. You are a great help saamin maslalo na nung variety show. Continue to serve God sa local church niyo, maslalo na alam ko active ka sa music ministry. Honor God with that passion for music and as you play outside the church, shine your light and let the whole world see that Chirst is in you!

-Mann: You're the man! Alam ko na na magiging blessing ka sa dorm with your cool ideas! Di na ako nahirapan to teach sa dorm natin sa pag tataoi ng necktie, tinulungan mo ako. Ikaw ang inassign namin ni kuya Adriel sa narration dahil alam namin na dun ka magaling at syempre mas magaling pa sa pag sasayaw! Identity ng Santillian brothers yan eh! Continue to sustain the bond ng dorm natin maslalo na sa chatbox and syempre for life. Thanks brother! See you so soon.

-Exekiel: 3 times dormate na kita! Tadhana na ba? Hehe. Appreciate ko yung, palagi kang nagvovolunteer maslalo na sa dorm cheers and sa variety show natin. God blessed you din with the gift of music, gamitin mo yun for God's glory. Medyo a lot of effort ang kailangan mo sa college. Do your best in everything and continue to bless others with your natural vibes ng pagpapatawa! Apir!

-Erickson: Ang  best camper ng 2B! You know why? Nakakitaan ka namin ng "kuya instinct" sa mga ka brothers mo. Ikaw ang isa sa mga maagang nagigising at nang gigising using your speaker at nagpapatugtog ng "lalalabmilykeyoudolalalabmilykeyoydo..." Haha! Sabi nga namin ni kuya Adriel, blessing ka kasi you helped us in crafting our cheers at sa variety show...maslalo na yung malupet ming sound effects! You are a good kuya! Affirm ko yan at ang leadership skills mo. Continue to love your hilig sa basketball. Alam kong medyo madrama ang nangyari sayo coming sa campsite...pero I know that was with you along the way. Marami ka sigurong iniisip, just pray and ask God to guide you sa decisions. God bless you brother!

Last but not the least: to our kuya head counselor Adriel, thank you! Thank you kasi God gave us the opportunity to work togather for our dorm! Andami nating advance plans and it all turned to be good at naging talagang "Everyday Okay" ang 6 amazing days natin with the campers! Alam ko kinakabahan ka kasi it is your first time as a counselor, pero for me, meron nang natural na kuyang pagaaruga for our dorm kaya di na tayo nahirapan to lead our dorm. Appreciate ko yung evealuation time natin every now and then if there is a need. Thank you for giving us some advices and life lessons during our devotional and sa dorm chats natin. I will always remember not to worry ng sobra maslalo na sa cheers natin everyday...dapat chill lang para everyday okay!!! See you soon kuya Adriel!

Brothers! Thank you for being part of my life, you will always be my brothers for life ang I will be your kuya forever. Continue to Live the Life! The life that is in our Father,Jesus and Holy Spirit! I will see you guys soon! I miss and love you all!

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." (Galatians 2:20 NIV)

And together we say...

"2B,DUGONG BUGHAW, EVERYDAY,OKAY!"

Your 2B Assistant Counselor,

Kuya Jep Parcasio

EXPERIENCING THE TRINITY

The first time that I have heard about this retreat through Dr. Rey Taniajura (I am very grateful to God for being used by Him), my spirit just got excited despite the possibility of not attending but, my heart's desire was answered! My supervising instructor excused me from my internship duties to attend this retreat.

Retreat? Yes a retreat that is to be brought to the Philippines for the first time. This retreat is organized by one of the ministries of our denomination which is the Odyssey In Christ founded by Dr. Larry Hinkle. This retreat's theme is - "Experiencing The Trinity". With the theme itself, I just felt ecstatic!!! The retreat was held in Christian Development Centre, Tagaytay last February 19-22.

The international facilitators were Dr. Larry Hinkle (Founder and Director), Dr. Charles and Carmen Fleming, Gracie Johnson, Donna Rae and Bill Wells, and Lorilee Imee.

We arrived an hour early before the orientation starts. As the other participants arrived, reunion and fellowship with our brethen from Bicol,Manila,Laguna was enjoyed! We had the orientation and introduction of the retreat the whole morning and in the afternoon, the facilitators gave us time rest in preparation for the dinner meeting in the evening. It was a unique experience for all of use when they asked us to be silent (no conversations) until the 1st chapel service in the following morning - that was really hard! Haha! The reason behind this exercise was to learn how to develop a soliture and silence before God for us to hear His voice and see His revelations.

The chapel services was one of the highlights of this retreat experience. Chapel services are celebrated solemnly before an altar of the communion elements,cross and candles. We partook the broken body and blood of Jesus each day of the retreat. This was just memorable and sacred.

The retreat sessions are not just informational (left brain) but altogether transformational (right brain) working together. Their were "real plays" not "role plays". On the first day, we devoted it in knowing,experiencing and having a journey of knowing God the Father better. We just basked on His love and God being our dad,tatay,papa,dada and tang. It was in the first session that I got an "imagery" of God spending time with me in the shoreline - if I could just paint that imagery!

The second day is for our brother,Lord and Savior Jesus, knowing and reaffirming His passion and redemptive work for all humanity. We all just enjoyed the time to just listen and talk to Jesus. In one of the sessions, Lorilee assigned us to be with our small groups to ask Jesus about things that He would want us to tell or encourage our brothers and sisters in the group. This time was very encouraging for me because I got a lot of word of arrifmations from my groupmates and yes, those "words" spoken are really from Jesus.

In the last night of being together, in our room, we enjoyed hearing each other's personal experiences during the retreat day 3. I am grateful that I have older brothers to give advices and even speak blessings to my life that night.

Early in the morning of our last day in the retreat, I decided to wake up early and have my solitude and silence with the Lord before our chapel time. My prayer is that Jesus will let me feel his tangilble presence (all my senses - hearing,tasting,touching, seeing and smelling) during that last day. Surely, Jesus heared and answered my prayer! Upon entering the chapel and sitting down in silence, I began to smell something...something fragrant, lke the scent of different flowers. I just ignored it at first thinking that it was just a perfume of somebody in the room. I tried to ask my aunt (who is beside me) if she could also smell that scent and she said yes...but again we ignored it. The smell became stronger as we approached the Table of The Lord during communion. I just enjoyed smelling that scent...ohhh that scent! Before we ended the chapel service, Ptr. Larry said that they will be anointing us with oil,be praying for us and commissioning us. I think I felt like my heart stopped beating that time because of surprise...a surprise because I have been asking God to affirm His presence in me through laying of hands for a long time! My tears kept flowing as I received the impartation and anointing through Donna Rae. To my surprise, the scent I was smelling was the actual smell I have been smelling even from the beginning of the chapel service. The scent became even more fragrant and stronger. I savored the presence of God. This was an affirmation of God's tangible presence in my sense of smell. I will never ever forget this encounter.

We returned home overflowing and if I may describe it this way, it was "a mountain-top experience" with Abba,Jesus and Holy Spirit. Now that I am aware that His presence is always with me,in me,for me and working through me, I am very expectant and excited of more of God's manifestation and encounter with Him.

Let is enjoy the presence of Abba,Jesus and Holy Spirit in our lives!

ARE YOU LISTENING?

Have you ever heard God's voice?

Did you listen attentively to what He's saying?

What can be hindering  us to hear God's voice?

Let us look at Samuel's story..

SAMUEL [1 Samuel 3]

Samuel is the son of Hannah - her answered prayer. For so long Hannah's been praying and pouring out her soul to the Lord to give her a son. And yes, the Lord granted her desire - the Lord gave him a son named Samuel.

(Let us be reminded that He is a "prayer-answering-God" and he hear all our prayers)

In response to God's faithfulness to Hannah's answered prayer, She then dedicated Samuel to the Lord by letting him serve in the tabernacle.

One night while Samuel is about to sleep, he heard a voice calling his name saying "Samuel,Samuel..." Immediately he got up and went to Eli's room knowing that He is the one who called him...

For the second time, this happened, still Eli told Him that He was not the one calling Him, but this time Eli told him that it must have been God who is calling He...Eli told Samuel to return sleeping but this time, when someone will be calling his name, his response will be...

Speak Lord for your servant is listening...

And yes, it was the Lord who has been calling Samuel...

Reflections:

How many times has the Lord been calling us or speaking to us?

Can we discern His voice?

Will we be obedient to what He's calling us to do?

What can be hindering us from listening to his voice? 

*There are a lot of distractions that may be hindering us from hearing God's voice this may be our being busy at school and work, we might not give time...a special time for God to speak to us through his Word- the bible? we may not be giving enough time for our prayer life? 

Do we set aside time to listen to him despite our busy lives?

Conclusion:

Let the Lord clear our ears for us to listen to him attentively - We ask the Holy Spirit to open our ears to hear, to hear his voice...

May our prayer be,