The lamp of the Lord had not gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of the Lord was. Then the Lord called Samuel . . . He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, but Eli called to him and said, ‘ Samuel, my son’. . .’ What was it he said to you?…So Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing from him….The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word (1 Sam 3: 3-4, 15-18).

Samuel continued as judge over Israel all the days of his life From year to year he went on a circuit from Bethel to Gigal to Mizpah, judging Israel in all those places, But he always went back to Ramah, where his home was, and there he also judged Israel. And he built an altar there to the Lord (1 Sam. 7:15-17).

These few words are a biography of a life lived within the circumference of kings, high priests, corruption, ego, rebellion, war, intrigue, madness, family disappointment, and tragedy. Yet, Samuel is remembered for integrity and faithfulness, because Samuel lived out of God, the true center.

I thought about Samuel for two reasons this week. I was asked to come to a group prepared to talk about a hero. Samuel is a hero to me for reasons I discuss in this message. I was also reflecting on what it takes to be a leader of effect and impact. I find lessons from Samuel’s life to be helpful in that regard.
Samuel’s life was a series of difficult confrontations chronicled in 1^st Samuel 1-16, 28.  Samuel had to carry God’s message to his mentor Eli who could not face the evil dysfunction of his own household. He led the Israelites against the Philistines who ravaged them. He contended with his own people when they rejected their God for a human king.

Samuel delivered God’s judgment to King Saul when that monarch was disobedient. Samuel had to disagree with the Patriarch Jesse over which of his sons would make a better king. He even had to execute the smarmy Amalekite king when Saul failed to carry out God’s instruction to do so. Rudely summoned from the grave by the witch of Endor to talk with a desperate Saul, the ghost of Samuel was honest to God in delivering the hard truth of Saul’s tragic end (1 Samuel 28).

Samuel was a no-nonsense leader. Whether it was issuing judgment, prophesying, delivering a message, leading the people into battle, or anointing a king, he did what he needed to do and no less and no more.

It must have tempted Samuel to stay on after the battle and national assemblies, to hold on to what had been gained, to attempt control against further disasters and future threats. However, when he had done his duty, Samuel “always went back” to his home and to the altar of his devotion to God.

One builds an altar stone by stone the way one builds a life with God prayer by prayer. Some are kept; others are discarded, in the search for the cohesive whole.

Even when the altar is built, it only serves to receive the sacrifice of the best that we know and possess to the God who possesses us. As an old hymn says, “. . . For you cannot have rest, or be perfectly blessed, until all on the altar you’ve laid.” That goes for our successes as well as our failures and our virtues as well as our sins.

The record shows a fearful Samuel, an angry Samuel, a disappointed Samuel, a bewildered Samuel at times, but it always reveals a faithful Samuel. He claimed no wisdom of his own and had to wait a lot of times for God to show him what to do.

Samuel had to decide all manner of disputes large and small among a notoriously feuding people. But even though his personal reputation for administration and fairness was spotless, his own children did not have his integrity. In the end, Samuel suffered the rejection of his grand vision of a people living in radical reliance upon God.

Samuel retired without rancor. In his final address to Israel, he requested a scrutiny of his record. The people found no fault with his service.

Samuel then pointed the people to their history of God leading them to past triumphs. He told them that they fell from this grace and their fortunes deteriorated when they neglected prayer as their first resort and dropped out of their singular pursuit of God as their reason for being.

Samuel reminded them that in each, dark, hour of their past God had never failed to send them a leader and a solution when they had confessed their sins, repented, and asked him for help. He pointed out that the people’s solution, a human king similar in style and function to the rulers of their neighbors, was no substitute for obedient submission to the word of their God.

Samuel asked them, “Isn’t this the day of wheat harvest, long after the rainy season? To reveal to you that God’s really in charge and you have ignored him, I am going to pray for thunder and rain.” The resulting cloudburst scared the people, and they finally saw their mistake. They pleaded with Samuel, “We get it. Pray to God that we will not die! We broke from his purpose when we asked for a king.”

The response was a real word of grace. Samuel told the people­
.

Don’t be afraid “You did do all these evil things. But don’t turn away from the Lord. Instead, serve the Lord wholeheartedly. Don’t turn away to follow other gods. They can’t help or rescue you, because they don’t exist. For the sake of his great name, the Lord will not abandon his people, because the Lord wants to make you his people. It would be unthinkable for me to sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. I will go on teaching you the way that is good and right. Fear the Lord, and serve him sincerely. Consider the great things he did for you. But if you go on doing what is evil, you and your king will be wiped out (1 Sam. 12:20-25, GW).

I take inspiration from this story of Samuel on weeks when I am inundated with texts, phone calls, when people’s arguments and frictions about security, position and support spill over into my conference room, when working through the issues keeps me occupied from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m.

What speaks to me is that Samuel kept his focus on God. Samuel “always went back to Ramah, where his home was…And he built an altar there to the Lord.”  Samuel could speak from his heart because he lived at peace with God in his heart. Samuel found his center and stayed with it.

Most mornings, at first light, I read Scripture and pray, listening for the God who knows everything about me and loves me anyway. As many evenings as possible, I spend time with Patricia, setting aside all other demands to be with the person who knows me best and loves me anyway.

Prayer and intimate conversation are the bookends of my day that keep me upright on the shelf and available to service. Humiliation has taught me that if I don’t remain between those bookends, I flop over like a spineless rag doll.

To leave the center of God’s presence is to risk the debilitation of competition, resentment, boredom and fear. To remain outside the center is to die a lingering, graceless death of the spirit. For the past twenty-seven years, I have been seeking the life of God by reading, meditation and prayer. I have learned that the umbilical cord of this life that can never be severed is prayer in the name of Jesus Christ who came as a living bridge between the infinite Father and our finite existence in this world. Henri J.M. Nouwen offers a perspective on this truth.
.

Jesus does not respond to our worry-filled way of living by saying that we should not be so busy with worldly affairs. He does not try to pull us away from the many events, activities, and people that make up our lives. He does not tell us that what we do is unimportant, valueless, or useless. Nor does he suggest that we should withdraw from our involvements and live quiet, restful lives removed from the struggles of the world.

.

Jesus’ response to our worry-filled lives is quite different. He asks us to shift the point of gravity, to relocate the center of our attention, to change our priorities. Jesus wants us to move from the “many things” [of our worry, felt needs and concerns] to the “one necessary thing” [adoration of our Lord]. It is important for us to realize that Jesus in no way wants us to leave our many-faceted world. Rather, he wants us to live in it, but firmly rooted in the center of all things. Jesus does not speak about a change of activities, a change in contacts, or even a change of heart. This change of heart makes everything different, even while everything appears to remain the same. This is the meaning of Jesus’ words: “‘do not worry; do not say, “What are we to eat? What are we to drink? How are we to be clothed?’… Your heavenly Father knows you need them all. Set your hearts on his kingdom first and his righteousness and all these other things will be given you as well” (Mt. 6:31-33).” What counts is where our hearts are. When we worry, we have our hearts in the wrong place. Jesus asks us to move our hearts to the center, where all other things fall into place.

.

“What is this center? Jesus calls it the kingdom, the kingdom of his Father. For us…, this may not have much meaning. Kings and kingdoms do not play an important role in our daily life. But only when we understand Jesus’ words as an urgent call to make the life of God’s Spirit our priority can we see better what is at stake. A heart set on the Father’s kingdom is also a heart set on the spiritual life. To set our hearts on the kingdom therefore means to make the life of the Spirit within and among us the center of all we think, say, or do” (Making All Things New [Harper & Row: New York, 1981], pp. 41-43).

.
I write these words of grace to busy people like me who are hungry for truth and starved for love. My invitation to you this day is dare to be a Samuel. Seek the center without compromise or detour and live in the reality of God’s love. Leave from that home each morning, pausing here and there during the day to phone home by prayer. Return there each evening and leave the best and worst of yourself on the altar of devotion to the God who is always there for you.

Please note that the content and viewpoints of Mr. Hansen are his own and are not necessarily those of the C.S. Lewis Foundation. We have not edited his writing in any substantial way and have permission from him to post his content.

————————–

Kent Hansen is a Christian attorney, author and speaker. He practices corporate law and is the managing attorney of the firm of Clayson, Mann, Yaeger & Hansen in Corona, California. Kent also serves as the general counsel of Loma Linda University and Medical Center in Loma Linda, California.

Finding God’s grace revealed in the ordinary experiences of life, spiritual renewal in Christ and prayer are Kent’s passions. He has written two books, Grace at 30,000 Feet and Other Unexpected Places published by Review & Herald in 2002 and Cleansing Fire, Healing Streams: Experiencing God’s Love Through Prayer, published by Pacific Press in spring 2007. Many of his stories and essays about God’s encompassing love have been published in magazines and journals. Kent is often found on the hiking trails of the southern California mountains, following major league baseball, playing the piano or writing his weekly email devotional, “A Word of Grace for Your Monday” that is read by men and women from Alaska to Zimbabwe.