Here I Am, Lord!! By “Sam” Miller

Here I Am, Lord!!  By “Sam” Miller

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

At that time, Samuel was not familiar with the LORD because the LORD had not revealed anything to him as yet.  The LORD called Samuel again for the third time.  Getting up and going to Eli, he said, “Here I am.  You called me.”  Then Eli understood that the LORD was calling the youth. So, he said to Samuel, “Go to sleep, and if you are called, reply, Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.”  When Samuel went to sleep in his place, the LORD came and revealed his presence, calling out as before, “Samuel, Samuel!”  Samuel answered, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” 1 Samuel 3:7-10

R. Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.

Sacrifice or offering you wished not,

    but ears open to obedience you gave me.

Holocausts or sin-offerings you sought not;

    8athen said I, “Behold I come.” Psalms 40:2, 4, 7-8 

But whoever is joined to the Lord becomes one Spirit with him. Avoid immorality.  Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the immoral person sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been purchased at a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body. 1 Cor 6:17-20

John was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God.” The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them, “What are you looking for?”  They said to him, “Rabbi” — which translated means Teacher —,, “where are you staying?” He said to them, “Come, and you will see.”  So, they went and saw where Jesus was staying, and they stayed with him that day.  It was about four in the afternoon. John 1:35-39 

Piety

Here I Am, Lord

I, the Lord of snow and rain,

I have borne my people’s pain.

I have wept for love of them.

They turn away.

I will break their hearts of stone,

Give them hearts for love alone.

I will speak my word to them.

Whom shall I send? 

Here I am, Lord. Is it I, Lord?

I have heard you calling in the night.

I will go, Lord, if you lead me.

I will hold your people in my heart.

Isaiah 6 - Dan Schutte

Study

Considering all of today’s readings, the message I get is the Lord is patient.  He knows I know He’s there; I’m “joined to the Lord.”  It has to be my decision to recognize Him; to be open to hearing His call; to do His will, as His law is written “within my heart,” and to see where He is staying, to remain with and in Him. 

The Lord called Samuel three times, and he ran to Eli every time as he “was not familiar with the LORD because the LORD had not revealed anything to him as yet.”  Samuel didn’t know he was looking in the wrong direction at that time, answering the wrong call source.

The footnotes from the USCCB Bible for the Gospel from John offer, “John the Baptist’s testimony makes his disciples’ following of Jesus plausible,” and the disciples were “Andrew and traditionally, John, son of Zebedee.”  Verse 39 says, “They went and saw where Jesus was staying, and they stayed with Him that day.  It was about four in the afternoon.”: “Literally, the tenth hour, from sunrise, in the Roman calculation of time. Some suggest that the next day, beginning at sunset, was the sabbath; they would have stayed with Jesus to avoid travel on it.”  Then, Andrew found his brother Simon, brought him to Jesus, and Jesus renamed him. 

Searching the internet about Jesus calling of the disciples uncovered article* that suggests Jesus had formed relationships with His disciples before calling them to follow Him, to become fishers of men.  The article explained that to be disciples didn’t mean that one gave up his livelihood and immediately became a full-time follower.  It said that Andrew, Simon, James & John were religious men already, and the Gospel identifies Andrew and John as followers of John the Baptist.

My point is if Jesus called His disciples several times before inviting them to come and follow Him, how many times will Jesus have to call me from my wandering ways to follow Him? 

Action

To aspire daily, to live a life of the truth that I am in Jesus and Jesus stays IN ME, He is MINE!!

*Jesus did not merely tell people who barely knew him to give up their occupations and follow him. He cultivated a relationship with his future Apostles, disciplined them to some extent, and finally called them into full-time ministry. (From the Sower Magazine, Issue: 1st quarter 2015, The Calling of the Disciples)