“Answer That Phone”

“Answer That Phone”
by Brian Reid – June 17, 2007

Have you ever phoned someone, numerous times in one day or over a couple of days, and not gotten an answer?

You’ve called and called and called – but there just wasn’t any response. You wonder why.
You wonder where they are.
Have they gone away, suddenly?
Is the phone broke?
Has something happened to them?
Are they hurt, maybe lying on the floor unconscious?

Many things race through your mind, and the more you call, the more you get concerned – so you finally decide to go over and check on them.

You hurry over, expecting the worst; you rush in, and there they are, sitting at the kitchen table, sipping tea.

Are you all right?
Are you hurt?
Where have you been?
Is everything OK?

They calmly say; “Everything is fine. Why, what’s up?”

You say something like; “What’s up? What’s up? I’ve been trying to call you for days, and you didn’t answer! That’s what’s up!”

“Oh,” they say. “I saw it was you on the phone, but I didn’t feel like talking, so I didn’t answer.”


‘Call Display’ is a wonderful, and very convenient tool to have on your phone. The phone rings, you walk over to it, and peer down to see who it is.

Then! Then, you decide whether you want to talk to that person or not. You might say to yourself;

“Oh, that’s the Pastor. I wonder what he wants.”

“Well, that’s 3 times today that she has called me. She really must want me to do something.”

“That’s him again. Why does he always call me, and tell me about his problems. I’ve told him a 100 times what to do.”

“Um, she phones me every, single, day; and yaks and yaks about nothing. I really don’t like her that much.”

Does that sound familiar?


Now, on this phone, let me tell you who called Peggy and I, over the last few days…

(cordless black phone)

‘Call Display is good and bad, at the same time. Screening your calls can make people mad and frustrate others trying to get through. Screening your calls does have its good points. For example, we don’t have to bother with the telemarketers, or other annoying people.

Let me ask you this. How many times has God, your Father called you, and you have looked down at the ‘Call Display’ and said;

“There He is again, I wonder what he wants; really must want me to do something; why does he always call me; phones me every, single, day; I really don’t like Him that much.”

Does that sound familiar?


From our scriptures, we know that…

Samuel was a Judge, a Prophet and a Priest. Samuel was called by Father God, and Samuel’s life is a true testimony, of what God can do in our lives, and what we can do in our lives, for God.

And we also know that…Hannah was a barren woman, unable to bear children. In Old Testament times, a childless woman was considered a failure, to her husband and to society. Children were a very important part of the economic structure of that time – for children were a source of labor for the family.

Hannah had good reason to be discouraged and bitter towards life, and towards God; but instead of retaliating or giving up hope, Hannah brought her problem before her Heavenly Father.

She prayed:
“O lord Almighty, if you will look down upon my sorrow and answer my prayer, and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the Lord, his hair will never be cut.”

Upon her request, and in due time, Hannah gave birth to a son, and she named him Samuel. Because of what she had promised, when Samuel was weaned from his mother (about 3 years old), she presented him to Eli the Priest, at the Tabernacle in Shiloh, to serve in the House of the Lord.

In dedicating her only son, this once - barren woman, was dedicating her entire life and future to God. Because Samuel’s life was a gift from God, Hannah was not really giving him up; rather, she was returning him to God. For God had given Samuel to Hannah in the first place.

In his years with Eli, Samuel grew in faith with his Father God, and his mother visited him often and brought robes and other necessities for him. Samuel stayed with Eli the Priest, and served the Lord. And as he grew taller, he also continued to gain favor with the Lord – and with the people.

1 Samuel 3:1;
“Meanwhile, the boy Samuel was serving the Lord by assisting Eli. Now in those days messages from the Lord were very rare, and visions were quite uncommon.”

Although God had spoken directly and audibly with Moses and Joshua (and others), His word became rare during the 3 centuries of rule by the judges. By Samuel and Eli’s time, no prophets were speaking God’s messages to Israel. The people, including Eli’s own sons, either refused to listen to God, or allowed greed to get in the way of any communication with God at all.

Verses 2 & 3;
“One night Eli, who was almost blind by now, had just gone to bed. The Lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the Tabernacle, near The Ark of God.”

Eli the Priest would have been about 88 years old. He stayed in a room adjacent to the sanctuary, with Samuel actually sleeping in the Temple itself. The Lamp of God had not gone out yet, which may indicate that the time of day was early morning. The burning of the Lamp, indicates the Devine Presence.

The Tabernacle was a portable sanctuary (a tent), that served as a place of worship for the Israelites (during the wilderness period - of the Exodus0. It was a temporary meeting-place for our Father, God and His children. Also called ‘the Tabernacle of the Congregation’ or ‘the Tent of Meeting.’

‘The Ark of God’, ‘The Ark of the Covenant’, ‘The Ark of Yahweh’, ‘The Ark of Testimony’ was the scared object; where the Presence of the Lord was believed to dwell, as He communicated with, and led His people through the wilderness, to the Promised Land.

The Ark was kept in the Holy of Holies, the Most Holy Place, the inner-most room of the Tabernacle; where only the High Priest could enter once a year. In front of the Most Holy Place was the Holy Place, a small room where the scared furniture of the Tabernacle was kept. Just outside the Holy Place was a courtyard, with small rooms where the priests stayed.

Samuel most likely slept here with the other priest, only a few yards away from the Ark of God.

Verses 4 – 8;
“Suddenly, the Lord called out, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’
‘Yes,’ Samuel replied. ‘What is it?’ He jumped up and ran to Eli.
‘Here I am. What do you need?’
‘I didn’t call you,’ Eli replied. ‘Go back to bed.’

So he did.

Then the Lord called out again, ‘Samuel!’
Again, Samuel jumped up and ran to Eli.
‘Here I am,’ he said. ‘What do you need?’
‘I didn’t call you, my son,’ Eli said. ‘Go on back to bed.’

“Samuel did not yet know the Lord, because he had never had a message from the Lord before.”

“So now the Lord called a third time, and once more Samuel jumped up and ran to Eli. ‘Here I am,’ he said. ‘What do you need?’”

“Then Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling the boy.”

It would have been customary for an audible message from the Lord to be given to the Priest Eli, and not to the child Samuel. For, Eli was older and more experienced, and Eli held the proper position, but God decided on Samuel. God choose Samuel. God choose a boy over a Priest – why?

God’s chain of command is based on faith, not on age or position. God’s chain of command is based on faith.

Verse 9;
“So Eli said to Samuel, ‘Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again say: Yes, Lord, your servant is listening.’
So, Samuel went back to bed.”

Eli recognized God’s calling to Samuel, and he knew that God often uses unexpected channels to get His messages across to His people. For God uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things.

God chooses those whose faith is strong. God could choose you and could ask you to do something for him. Something great and noble, such as David or Moses. He could ask you, to simply follow His ways, and tell others about His saving grace; such as the boy, Samuel.

Sometimes we question our faith and we wonder if it will last or stay alive. But, just asking those questions, without giving in, or giving up, shows you still have some faith in your faith. God also has faith in your faith, and He calls to those who He knows will do a great job.

Verse 10;

“And the Lord came and called as before, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’
And Samuel replied;
‘Yes, Lord, your servant is listening.”

Samuel took the advice of his friend Eli, and listened for the sound of God’s voice. He actually listened for God. He cleared everything else out of his mind, lay there, silently, in the darkness, waiting. And God did not disappoint him, and God called to Samuel; and Samuel heard the voice of His Heavenly Father - Samuel heard the voice of Father God.

Listening and responding is vital, in a relationship with God. Although our Father, does not always use the sound of a human voice, He always speaks clearly through His Word. To receive His messages, we must be ready to listen, and to act upon what He tells us. Like Samuel, we must be ready to say “Here I am Lord,” when God calls us into action.

For Samuel, he had never heard or received a message or revelation from God before, so when it came, he didn’t recognize it. We are much the same. We pray and ask for a miracle or a sign, but when it comes, we fail to identify it and miss it. For Samuel, God called him 3 times and 3 times Samuel knew not it was God. Only after Eli had brought it to his attention, did Samuel recognize God’s forth calling.

Sometimes in life, there are signs that we are unaware of, until someone points them out. Today, God’s small voice is often not heard because of everything that’s going on around us. As the Grinch points it; “All the noise, noise, noise!”

TV, radio, video games, chat rooms, MSN; hatred, war and violence. All these things, and so much more distract us from hearing God’s audible, small voice. But if we find a place of solitude, open our minds, and read the Bible; then the Lord’s voice, through His Word can be heard.

God’s voice is be heard by reading and understanding the Bible; through sincere prayer, by recognizing the many miracles and gifts He gives us daily, by acknowledging the wonder around us as His work, and by the feeling deep within us of peace.

On this Father’s day, as we listen to the interaction of Fathers and Children, remember that our Heavenly Father is calling to us;

“Come, be part of the Family of God, hear me when I speak, respond to my Word, cherish the love I offer; and Answer That Phone.”

Let us pray;

Blessings upon you!
Happy Father’s Day; one and all.