Every time I hear “Samuel”, a name given to any young male Christian entering the full time ministry in CBC, I am reminded of Hannah who made a vow to give her son to the Lord (1 Samuel 1,2). I have been blessed by her life and have empathized with her predicament, yet I have never learned that the step of faith she made was a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit in her (1:15b).
I once thought because of cultural background, that concept never applies to me. Then the Lord spoke to me while working with you young people who sometimes call me “Nanay, Ate, Ma’am/Mom or Tita Bing.” Through this ministry I can also share the life of mothers. I have seen their grief over a rebellious daughter with an unsaved boyfriend, a pregnant daughter still in school, a son who is addicted to computer games, pornography, smoking or drugs. I have also seen sons and daughters becoming disheartened because their parents would not support their interest for the Lord’s work
Here was the key to Hannah’s satisfying life. She did not live superficially that ultimately led to faith falling apart. When she was filled with the Holy Spirit, she was mistaken as being drunk with wine. Her heart was in deep relationship with God allowing Him to guide each step of her life. And the result was a heart rejoicing in the Lord in chapter 2.
Oftentimes, I seek the advise of our Pastor’s wife as I encountered odd situations a youth is going through. I need the wisdom of motherly understanding. Ate Eden would share to me that at times she too is fearful of the thought that “what if my children are not really called in the endeavor we encouraged them to do which is geared to the fulltime ministry that we have asked God to call them to?” But we would part ways agreeing that walking by the Holy Spirit relieves anyone from crippling fears.
I was inspired when brother Joel Dayrit (one of the Samuels) showed me his baby picture with his parents. It was taken when they dedicated him to the Lord. He pasted it at the back of his Bible to remind him of his parents’ prayer for him to be called by God. I have never met his parents but with deep admiration especially for his mother, I whispered a prayer that the Holy Spirit be victorious in each step of Joel’s life. How blessed also is Ate Joy because her Lester has entered the ministry to be your full-time “kuya” in the youth ministry. I wish Robin’s mother too would experience joy for a son who left secular schooling to enter the Bible school.
These young men’s decisions were not human manipulations but rather a choice they made allowing the Holy Spirit to guide them. I realized that the reason I don’t have a faith like Hannah is because I have in my personal and ministerial life, thoughts and deeds which I don’t want to give up to God. Being filled with the Holy Spirit means allowing God to have more of us daily even when part of us is not ready to do so because we want God’s presence more than anything else.
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