He "Continued Growing Up With Jehovah"

He "Continued Growing Up With Jehovah"

Samuel looked into the faces of his people.  The nation had gathered a the town of Gilgal, summoned by this faithful man who had served as prophet and judge for decades. It was May or June by modern reckoning; the dry season was well along. The fields in the region were golden with wheat ready to harvest.  Silence fell over the crowd.  How could Samuel reach their hearts?

The people did not understand how serious their situation was.  They had insisted on having a human king to rule over them. They did not grasp  that they had shown disrespect to their God, Jehovah and to his prophet.  They were, in effect, rejecting Jehovah  as their King! How could Samuel move them to repentance?

Samuel spoke:  "I have grown old and gray," he told the crowd.  His whitening hair added weight to his words.  He then said: "I have walked before you frm my youth to this day." ( 1 Samuell 11:14, 15; 12:2)  Though Samuel was old, he had not forgotten his youth. His memories of those early days were still vivid.  The decisions he had made back then, as a growing boy, had led him to a life of faith and devotion to his God, Jehovah.

Samuel had to build and maintain faith, although again and again he was surrounded by  people who were faithless and disloyal.  Today, it is just as challenging to build faith, for we  live in a faithless and corrupt world.  (Read Luke 18:8) Let us see what we can learn from Samuel's example, starting in his early boyhood.

Next time:"Ministrering Before Jehovah, as a Boy" 

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