Last week, our church leadership team gathered for a retreat to envision what God might have for Madison Church in the year ahead. It was a great weekend of connection, laughter, and planning.
On the way there, though, I had an experience that speaks to exactly what we’re diving into today. Following my GPS, I was driving to the retreat location when I suddenly lost cell service. One moment, my phone was fully functional; the next, I was “out of network”—unable to text, call, or receive any messages. My phone had everything it needed—hardware and software—but it was just an expensive calculator without a connection.
And in many ways, isn’t that how our spiritual lives feel sometimes?
We have everything we need to connect with God, but if we’re “out of network,” the line feels dead. No connection, no clarity—just silence. If you’re feeling spiritually distant or like your prayers aren’t getting through, it doesn’t mean something’s wrong with you. It could simply mean that you’re out of network. Like my phone in a dead zone, you’re in a place where communication isn’t possible.
In life, it’s easy to find ourselves spiritually “out of range” because of the distractions and noise surrounding us every day. But how can we get back into range and reconnect with God?
The Dead Zone of Familiarity
This idea of being out of range brings us to today’s passage: the story of young Samuel in 1 Samuel 3. Samuel was living with Eli, the high priest, who had devoted his life to God. But when God calls Samuel one night, Eli—who should have known God’s voice better than anyone—doesn’t even recognize what’s happening.
In fact, it takes Eli a few rounds of Samuel waking him up before he realizes it might be God calling the boy. By then, Eli has grown spiritually disconnected. His life with God has become so familiar that he’s lost the wonder and attentiveness he once had.
Eli represents what can happen when familiarity with God leads to complacency.
But Samuel, on the other hand, has positioned himself close to God’s presence. Even while sleeping, Samuel is physically near the Ark of the Covenant, symbolizing his desire to be as close to God as possible. He doesn’t know God’s voice yet, but he’s ready to listen, to be in a position when God calls.
Speak, Lord, Your Servant is Listening
What happens next is powerful and precise. Eli finally instructs Samuel to respond, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.” This phrase holds a timeless truth for us. We must do so with an open, expectant heart when we come before God. Listening doesn’t mean presenting a list of needs; it means setting aside our agendas and quieting our minds. And it means being present to receive, just as Samuel did.
Listening is harder than it sounds. If we’re honest, we’re more accustomed to telling God what we need, what’s wrong, and what’s frustrating. But if we only speak, we may miss what God is trying to tell us. True listening means being open to whatever God wants to say, even if it challenges or redirects us. It’s about being fully present and willing to hear things we may not have expected or even wanted.
Three Steps to Hear God More Clearly
The New Testament book of James gives us a few practical steps for tuning our lives to hear God better. In James 1:19, we’re told to be “quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger.” This is a call to create intentional space for God in our lives.
Here are three steps we can take to cultivate a heart ready to listen:
- Create Space for Quiet Listening: Like Samuel, we must be close to God’s presence. This means creating a quiet time and place to simply listen—whether in the morning, before bed, or during a walk free of distractions. In these moments, practice saying, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening,” and wait. Reflect momentarily: “Where am I making space for quiet listening?” This simple invitation and silent waiting often open a space where God’s voice can begin to come through.
- Slow Down: James also tells us to be “slow to speak.” This means resisting the urge to fill the silence with our words or reactions. Samuel didn’t rush to interpret God’s words; he simply listened, ready to receive. By slowing down our minds and being quiet, we allow God to guide us without jumping to conclusions or pushing our agendas. Reflect momentarily: “Where do I need to slow down my responses?” Taking a few moments daily to quiet our minds can lead us to a more open posture to hear God.
- Humbly Accept What God is Saying: James encourages us to “humbly accept the word planted in you.” Samuel’s response to God was a humble “Here I am.” Humility opens our hearts to receive what God has for us, even if it challenges or stretches us. It’s a reminder that God loves us enough to meet us where we are and enough not to leave us there. Take a moment to reflect: “Am I open to hearing something new or challenging from God?”
Turning Listening into a Habit
Building a habit of listening takes time, and reconnecting spiritually doesn’t happen overnight. If you’ve been out of range for weeks, months, or even years, it’s not realistic to expect instant clarity. But by cultivating daily moments of listening, we make gradual progress. Over time, like Samuel, we’ll find that we hear God’s voice more clearly over time, inviting us to live with purpose and direction.
During our retreat, I wondered what would happen if we all went outside to pray and only said, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening,” without asking for anything else. How would our spiritual lives be impacted if we practiced intentional listening with no agenda other than to hear from God?
Just as my phone eventually reconnected to the network on my drive home, filling with missed calls and texts, we too will experience God’s voice filling our lives when we move back within range.
A Journey Back to Connection
As we move forward this week and in the coming months, let’s be intentional about “getting back into the network.” Let’s not pressure ourselves for immediate results but instead commit to taking small steps toward God each day. The truth is, God is always reaching out, always speaking—our job is to position ourselves to listen.
Samuel’s story reminds us that hearing from God isn’t just for the spiritually mature. Sometimes, like Eli, our familiarity with God can make us complacent, while a fresh, expectant heart like Samuel’s is ready to receive. By returning to God daily with open hearts, we’ll gradually find his voice coming through, guiding us through life’s noise and chaos.
So, this week, consider where you’re at spiritually. Are you “out of range”? What distractions are keeping you from hearing God’s voice? I encourage you to set aside just five minutes each day to sit quietly with God and simply say, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.” As you commit to this practice, you’ll find God’s voice growing clearer and your life reflecting the peace and clarity that come from being truly connected to him.
