“…In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions.” 1 Samuel 3:1
To me this is one of the saddest passages of scripture in the Bible, it should also be one of the scariest. Think of it, God’s presence was with His people when they made their exodus from Egypt. He guided the Israelites with a pillar of cloud by day and a light by night. He was with them, and His word was readily available. Now fast-forward to Samuel’s era, and we find a people who have gone astray again, and they are far from God and His presence. I can think of nothing scarier.
There were too few prophets, there were hardly any visions…the people of God were lost…and God stopped talking to them.
I wonder if we are a little like that generation of Israelites today?
I don’t mean to make us feel guilty, but as a society, as a culture, how far have we strayed from God? Do we still listen for His voice, or are we deaf because of the noise around us? There are so many distractions, and how many of us have been carried away by the tides of culture? Dare I say that we are in a situation as a generation where this passage seems to ring true once more. We have some church leaders and pastors who worship the almighty dollar, instead of God. There are churches that have become so divided by one thing or another that they are of no use to the Kingdom of heaven any longer…and I fear that God has become silent to many.
Is There Hope?
Yes I believe there is!
But are we listening?
Are we tuning in to God’s message for us?
or are we too focused on other things?
are we far too busy with our lives and our fancy churches?
I pray that we find that connection with God once again if He has become silent to us.
It isn’t that God is far away, it is that we have moved away from Him.
Prayer:
Lord draw us back to you.
May we hunger and thirst after your righteousness once more.
Make us Holy. Convict us when we have gone astray. Strengthen us to stand against the tide of the evil one and of a society that rejects you. Make us your people again. Restore us oh Lord. -Amen.
Pastor's Ponderings 
There are some inexplicable reasons why God is silent. It is perhaps easy to blame ourselves. Instead, let us concentrate on doing our part. Many times it involves just being silent. That is too difficult for your average Christian to do, but it also has its rewards.
I have noticed that in many prayer times we would rather fill it with noise than just be silent. Sometimes God asks us to do nothing except “be still and know that I am God.”