Are we listening to the whispers spoken in the silence? - And how do we respond?

Today at Holy Mass we hear in the first reading from the Book of Samuel about young Samuel the prophet, how he was called by God in the night and interestingly enough, he did not recognize the voice….Why? - Why did he not know God’s voice?…..It was not until he responded to that voice with this statement that his “eyes” and “ears” were opened….“Speak, for your servant is listening”….Was it because Samuel’s heart was not open that he did not recognize God? - Was it because he did not have the mind and heart of a humble servant that he did not recognize the voice of God?…..These are question we need to address….God’s voice is all around us…He speaks to us through all our decisions - Through our life - Not to mention in the words of Holy Scripture we “hear” at Mass ….With that being said - Do we “hear” him?……..Unlike the voices of our modern day - God speaks in a whisper…More times then not, we must create quiet time for ourselves to hear the voice of God and if we do, particularly if we sit before the Blessed Sacrament in silence, we will hear his voice…But what else “gets in the way” of us not hearing God’s voice?…..The answer - Our sin and Our pride…..Sin prevents us from “seeing”  and “hearing” - It blinds us and makes us deaf!………This is why there are many references of “blindness” noted in the pages of the New Testament…..When we frequent the Sacrament of Reconciliation often, we “clear a path” for grace to penetrate deeply with our our soul - This permits us to “see” the world as God would like us to “see” - But what prevents us from going to a Catholic Priest to confess our sins? - The answer - Could it be our pride?…..Notice again from the reading today at Mass…Young Samuel the prophet did not recognize the voice of God at first…Its was not until he took upon himself the mindset of a servant……‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening”…In essence, Samuel humbled himself and as a result he understood who was calling him - The same will happen to us today…If we clear away our sin Sacramentally, humble ourself and take upon our self the heart of a servant…We too we recognize God’s voice just as Samuel did…And then we must respond

“Samuel grew up, and the LORD was with him, not permitting any word of his to be without effect. Thus all Israel from Dan to Beersheba came to know that Samuel was an accredited prophet of the LORD”

Do we pray before we make big decisions? - If we don’t, we should…Spending time before the Blessed Sacrament in silence is very important…My wife and I both spend one hour each week in the earlier morning hours before our children get up in front of the exposed Eucharist….…A friend of mine who is a Carmelite Priest once told me….. “Joe - “Adoration is like radiation. - The time spent before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament changes us because Jesus radiates his love upon us, even if we do not notice it. Just like when we sit down the beach on a sunny day, our skin changes color and becomes tan - So it is when we sit before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament - His love radiates upon us, which in time transforms us”….This is reality - Siting before Jesus in Adoration is what I call a “saint maker”….Many saints prescribed to this practice daily (Mother Teresa; Fulton Sheen - To name two), therefore we too should follow suit….Allow me to share with you one time I distinctly heard God’s voice while siting in Adoration…It was a year before I was going to get married…..I was siting before the Blessed Sacrament and heard a voice very distinctly tell me to buy a house…I had the money, but at the time so many things were going on, I was unsure if buying a house was the right thing to do…So as the voice instructed, I bought a house - Looking back - This was a very good decision….Just as Samuel today heard a voice…We too will hear Jesus speak to us in a whisper if we make time each week to sit before him…..As Mother Teresa would always say…….“The time you spend with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is the best time you will spend on earth. Each moment that you spend with Jesus will deepen your union with Him and make your soul everlastingly more glorious and beautiful in Heaven, and will help bring about everlasting peace on earth.”……Make the time - “Clear a path” - Quiet down - And you will hear God’s voice too

“Sacrifice or oblation you wished not, but ears open to obedience you gave me. Burnt offerings or sin-offerings you sought not; then said I, “Behold I come.”

Today at Mass we hear how young Samuel the Prophet had to discern how to hear the voice of God….Just as Samuel had to learn to “hear”, so must we….God is constantly speaking to us…But our society can not hear him because of all the “noise”…And don’t think for a moment the devil is not aware of this - ”Noise” - Sadly a lot of this “noise” is self created and frankly unnecessary…….If we address the “root causes” for our lack of hearing - And make time to sit before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament - We surely will hear his voice….And once we hear that voice - We must act upon it…….Once Samuel “figured it out” he responded rightly - “Speak, for your servant is listening”……How about us? - Are we listening to the whispers spoken in the silence? - And how do we respond?……..JMJ