Sleepyhead....

......wake up now

My mom used to call me sleepyhead, because i always was the last person to get up from the bed. I used to be so lazy even to turn off the alarm and my mom would do that honour for me. And finally after so many visits to my bedroom, by my mom, i used to wake up from sleep. It was a daily routine for my mohter when i was a school going kid. She never would get mad at me no matter how difficult it was for her to manage kitchen, others in the family and as well as me and i think, probably, it must be the same case with most of the mothers handling their children during morning. On one sunday when i was in sunday school, teacher told us a beautiful story from the Bible about a little boy named Samuel.

The story was like this - When Samuel was very little, just about three years old, his mother Hannah took him to the chief priest of Israel Eli who would look after the tabernacle (church) of God. She left the little boy there with Eli as she had promised God that she would offer her first child to the Lord's service if God granted her wish to conceive a baby boy. Hannah was barren when she prayed and promised God about this and she was honest enough to keep the same promise she made to God. Samuel must've cried when his mother left him, but Eli, the chief prieft was very loving and took care of the little boy Samuel very well. Thus Samuel grew with the grace of God and the blessings of Eli. Though Samuel was very little, he never complained about anything and was devoted to the Lord's service with all dedication. Eli was also very concerned and caring toward the boy and gave him the all the little responsibilties and duties that Samuel could do at his age. One of the duties of Samuel was to stay in the tabernacle all night, close the doors at night and then open them in the morning.And one night God spoke to Samuel in a vision : He heard a voice calling him and Samuel was quick enough to wake up from the sleep. As he thought Eli must had called him, he went straight to Eli. But when Eli said that he hadn't called him, he went back to his bed and this happend twice like that. Second time when Eli saw Samuel, he realised that it must be God who called the little boy, so he asked Samuel to respond to the voice saying "Speak Lord, here i am". Samuel did exactly the same way Eli told him to do when he heard the voice third time and thus God spoke to Samuel in a vision. God told Samuel that he would perish Eli's sons who had been so wicked all the time to God's people. And this way Samuel grew in favour with the Lord and with men and became a chief priest of the tabernacle when he was old enough.

With this story the sunday school teacher told us a lesson that one must always be alert in order to have blessings from the Lord to become what we want and to be successful in life. That story was kind of wake up call for me and since then i always woke up soon after the alarm ring without mom having to visit me and wake me up. And this story had always been a great reminder to me whenever i was lazy toward my goal.