You have searched me out and known me (examined me. And know me)
Follow Me…Come and See
These are three of the most beautiful sentiments in scripture and we have heard all of them today!
The prophet Samuel’s birth was another one of those “miracle” births. Much like Sarah before her and Elizabeth after, Hannah, Samuel’s mother, could not conceive. A woman of great faith, Hannah promised God that if she conceived, she would dedicate the child to God. So, once she gives birth to Samuel, he’s presented to the old priest Eli. From that day forward, Samuel lived within the temple walls…as one commentator puts it…”as a permanent altar boy.” This background is important to understanding the the scene we read today because if anyone should recognize God’s voice, it’s Samuel; yet this 13 year old boy, who worshipped day and night at the side of Eli, didn’t recognize God’s voice when God spoke to him. Three times, Samuel assumes that the voice beckoning him is Eli’s. If Samuel, whose life’s been devoted to God’s worship and service couldn’t “hear” God how hard is it for us to hear, to listen, to receive God into our life?
Our world is full of noise and distraction—Smart phones, iPads, kindles, tweets, instagram, facebook…24/7 news, 24/7 entertainment, 24/7 comments on every aspect of life. All noise, all the time.
How in the world are we to ever hear, recognize, and receive God in all this noise?
By following the same advice Eli gave Samuel that night thousands of years ago. By getting quiet, by sitting still and by saying to God, “Here I am.” And then, by shutting everything else out and off and listening….listening to God, listening for God. “I’m here God, your servant. And I am listening.”
I’m committed to spending 2 or 3 minutes every morning and 2 or 3 minutes every night in what I call “silent receptivity.” Just sitting and presenting my silent self to God. To hear, to listen, to receive. Perhaps you’d like to join me in this experiment. 2 or 3 minutes every morning every night. Silently receptive.
Now be forewarned, there’s a danger in getting that quiet, becoming that open to receiving God..because if we “get found” by God, if we enter the fold of God’s loving embrace we just may get “known.”
The psalmist says it two different ways, depending on the translation used. In the more familiar Book of Common Prayer translation the first verse of today’s psalm reads:
“You have searched me out and known me”
In the Common English Bible it reads:
“Lord, you have examined me.
You know me.”
You have examined me and I am known.
Both versions allude to the same thing---when we get settled enough, quiet enough, still enough ---we’ll realize this fundamental fact: No one knows us as well as God. No one sees us as well as God. No one Loves us as well as God.
And while that fact should, in theory, be comforting it is, in reality, somewhat terrifying. God knows us. God examines us. God sees us….fully and completely…not the “Cathy” “Pete” “Debi” “Charlie”… we present to the world….not the one we present to ourselves…No, when we sit still and say, “Here I am God, I’m listening,” we’ll come face to face with the truth of who we are in God’s eyes. The real us. The person God created, the child God adores.
Now, remember this isn’t for the feint of heart--
When we’re truly known, when we accept God into our lives, 100%, our lives will never be the same. Do this and we…each and everyone one of us… will experience fundamental and profound change.
Just like the apostles.
Today and next week our Gospels are stories about Jesus calling the twelve. The come and follow me texts…this week we have John’s version, next week Mark’s. Today we join the story midway through…Jesus has just been baptized and is getting down to the business of calling his closest followers…he’s already called Andrew and Andrew has already gone out and recruited his brother Simon Peter when he turns his sights on Nathanael…
Yes THAT Nathanael the one who has the funniest line in the Bible…”can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Nathanael’s a tough nut to crack, he has skeptic written all over him and no amount of cajoling by Andrew will get him to believe in this Jesus fellow so instead of trying to “sell” him, he just says, Come. See. And so Nathanael goes to see what the big deal is about this crazy preacher man from Galilee. And when he gets there? He discovers that Jesus already knows him. He discovers that Jesus has already sought him out, found him, seen him, examined him and knows the real and true him. Not the sarcastic and skeptical Nathanael but the genuine Nathanael who tells it like it is, doesn’t suffer fools gladly but who will live and die for the faith. Jesus had seen Nathanael, Jesus knew Nathanael and Nathanael, from that moment on, was never ever the same. All because he went, he heard, he saw, he knew and he followed.
Today’s readings are chock full of wonderful sayings and beautiful prose, providing a guidebook to being a faithful servant of the Lord:
Quiet Down.
Open Up
And Get Found
For the God of Love knows us better than we know ourselves
And when we let God in, when we choose to follow Jesus Christ, when we get quiet, still and receptive, we will be found, we will be loved and we will never ever be the same.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
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