Drawing Near: A Journey Through Samuel

1 Samuel 3

There are few things more precious to me than the sight of a child sleeping. The peace, comfort, and security (combined with the total dependence on a parent) has always drawn me to gaze upon precious sleeping faces. It becomes even more emotional when that sleeping face is next to yours as they cuddle with you because they simply want to draw near to your presence.

This picture is shown in Scripture as Samuel is simply drawn to the presence of God:

"Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD in the presence of Eli. And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision. At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place. 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." (1 Samuel 3:1-3 ESV)

He simply cuddled next to God and was lying down in His presence.

I do not feel like this was a rare moment that just happened to be mentioned in this passage. I believe that this is a sign and example given to us to show how he was drawing near to God. He simply wanted to sleep in His presence and be in His proximity, and I think this was something he did many times growing up.

Have you ever simply drawn near to God without words or any other intention than simply being with Him? I have, and I can tell you it is the most comforting place to be. Many times I have not had words to say (or was simply tired of talking about a situation) and just closed my eyes, relaxed, and sometimes drifted off to sleep. I usually begin by laying down at the foot of His throne (though I somehow always ended up in His arms).

If you haven't experienced God in this way, I can't encourage you enough to just develop a relationship with Him where you simply just learn to draw near to Him. Let not the world tell you that emotional relationships are not for men, hardly. There is far more strength required to show emotion than to conceal it.

Draw near.

Praying for you,

~Matthew