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1 Samuel 12 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
When our vision is blinded to reality, sometimes the most effective reminder comes from God flexing His muscles. It would be the power found in a storm that would shake the people’s selfish hearts.
Samuel called on the LORD, and on that day the LORD sent thunder and rain. As a result, all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. 19 They pleaded with Samuel, “Pray to the LORD your God for your servants, so we won’t die! For we have added to all our sins the evil of requesting a king for ourselves.”
1 Samuel 12:18-19 HCSB
Did you catch that? God sent a storm, and the people were filled with great fear.
“There could not, therefore, have been a stronger or more appropriate proof of a divine mission than the phenomenon of rain and thunder happening, without any prognostics of its approach, upon the prediction of a person professing himself to be a prophet of the Lord, and giving it as an attestation of his words being true. The people regarded it as a miraculous display of divine power, and, panic-struck, implored the prophet to pray for them. Promising to do so, he dispelled their fears.”
Jamieson Fausset-Brown
How do the storms that God allows into your life draw you into His presence? The people feared God but they didn’t run from Him. They decided to engage Samuel and asked for prayer. It was his prayer that strengthened them and propelled them in the direction of total obedience. So, how much are you engaging others in your battle? When the storms come, do you seek out prayer warriors like Samuel?
Finally, through this miraculous act, the people realized their sin. Just several chapters earlier, when Samuel warned them of choosing a king, they scoffed at his wisdom. Now, they are filled with repentance. It’s amazing to me that this all came about from a storm.
Storms can bring fruit if we are dialed in. For the people in 1 Samuel 12, their renewed sense of God’s strength spurred them into prayer and brought their hearts to repentance.