Towards the end of the movie, "Signs," lead character Graham Hess says to his younger brother: "See, what you have to ask yourself is, what kind of person are you – are you the kind that sees signs, sees miracles? Or do you believe that people just get lucky? Is it possible … there are no coincidences?

This morning's texts are about signs, and about hearing, and about listening. Our first text this morning details in part the call of Samuel. The story is told in I Samuel, the first of four books that tell the story of Israel's monarchy. Until this time, Israel had been governed by judges … the belief being that God was king, and a human king was unnecessary. Judges were called by God from out of the tribes to deal with day-to-day issues. As time went on this system became increasingly corrupt and the people of Israel clamored for a change … give us a king to lead us. With corrupt leadership, the people had also fallen away from following the Law, they strayed from their identity and wondered – is God still with us? In that climate we have the story of Samuel's calling. It will be Samuel that will usher in a new day for Israel, for he will be the one to anoint Israel's first king: Saul. Samuel's calling gives us a glimpse of how sad the times are in which he serves – Samuel is serving in the house of Eli, a priest. While Eli has been a faithful servant, his sons have not followed in that example – they are corrupt and abusive. We pick up his story today, hearing the details of his calling. Then, many years later we come to this morning's gospel text that details the call of the first disciples of Jesus as recorded in John's gospel. Here too, we find skepticism – how can Jesus be the one, he's only a carpenter's son from the lowly town of Nazareth.

Have you even found yourself wondering why God isn't more clear about giving directions? "Gee," we say, "why don't we get the kinds of signs the Biblical people got?" Where are the rainbows, the pillars, the earthquakes … where are the voices. Why, if Jesus walked up to me and said, 'Follow!' I surely would drop everything. How could the first disciples have had any questions?" If only we had it as easy as the people in our Biblical stories had it … we'd all be faithfully following God's will. First of all, I'm sure we have the advantage of hindsight, and all those clear signs, weren't so clear to those who lived in the midst of them. Second, I'm sure God is giving us signs just as much … that God is just as active with God's people as God was "back in the day." We're just not that open to listening and instead are more like poor Jake in this story that has many variations:

This is a story about a simple man named Jake, who was caught in the midst of a flash flood that struck his town. Despite the fact that he was not learned, Jake was an exceptionally pious person, and because of this he was certain that God would send him help and rescue him. As the waters began to flood his house, Jake grabbed his prayer book and climbed onto his roof to pray for salvation. As the waters rose, a rowboat passed by. "Climb aboard, Jake!" shouted those in the rowboat. But Jake replied, "Don't worry about me, I am going to be saved!" After a while a rescue helicopter passed overhead. "Grab the rope, Jake!" they cried. Jake lifted his hands to heaven and shouted, "It's okay. I'm going to be saved!" and he waved them on. Just then the floodwaters rose, knocking poor Jake off the roof and drowning him. When he arrived at the gates of heaven, he was angry and confused. "I was such a righteous man all my life," Jake said to God, "why didn't you save me?" God replied, "What do you mean? I sent you a rowboat. I sent you a helicopter … What more were you waiting for!?" (link)

In the midst of all the truths this morning's text tell us, they remind us to pay attention … to be open to not only hearing, but listening – for God is constantly speaking to us. The text from Samuel says: "The word of the LORD was rare in those days; visions were not widespread." I take that to mean that people had stopped listening, not that God rarely spoke. In Samuel's day there were just as many rainbows, pillars, clouds and visions as there always was … people had just stopped listening. It was not God's word that was rare it was the people's lack of response. The call of Samuel reminds us that God is still speaking. The verse following the text we read this morning has an unusual expression: "Then the Lord said to Samuel, 'See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears it tingle." It is a Hebrew term that announces that the time is coming when again the divine word will be heard and understood.

As we reflect on what it means to be attentive listeners, following the examples of Samuel, and those first disciples, we also remember those God has sent to help us along the way … and we remember that often, we're not thrilled with those reminders. For, often the signs and people that God sends our way do not bring welcome news, even as it is the Good News. The call of Samuel was a wake up call to the Israelites. As Jesus called the first disciples, they were reminded that he was ushering in a new day … and many found that call very threatening. The texts remind us that we too are called to listen to the ways God is calling us to change, to turn our lives around. The call to change is not something we readily embrace. Repentance is not about feeling bad, or being sorry, or groveling around in the misery of our failures … instead it is about change, actually doing something different … it is to respond to our failures by behaving differently. It is relatively easy to apologize for our actions … it is another thing entirely to allow God's word to turn us around to a new life. The sting of a prophet's message is not always welcome news to us … for it reminds us that all is not well, and we need to be paying attention to that … whether it be something we need to right in our personal behavior, or a systemic issue we need to be addressing, no matter how unpopular it might make us.

This morning as we are called to listen, to repent, and to walk in the example of those who have reminded us that God speaks just as often now, as God did back in the day, we remember in particular a modern day prophet and celebrate his legacy. As we celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I am reminded of how even the church did not welcome his message. One of King's concerns was the church's failure to be a good listener, its failure to respond to a call to repentance. When he was arrested jailed for participating in a non-violent demonstration protesting segregation he received a letter from eight white Alabama clergymen. While they agreed with King that change needed to come about to address racial inequality, they felt he should keep his fight in the courts and not on the streets of the city. They felt he had disgraced the church by his incarceration. In response to their letter King wrote what is now known as "Letter from a Birmingham Jail." In it he reminds us of the best of the church:

"There was a time when the church was very powerful. It was during that period when the early Christians rejoiced when they were deemed worthy to suffer for what they believed. In those days the church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was thermostat that transformed the mores of society. Whenever the early Christians entered a town the power structure got disturbed and immediately sought to convict them for being 'disturbers of the peace' and 'outside agitators.' But they went on with the conviction that they were 'a colony of heaven,' and had to obey God rather than man. They were small in number, but big in commitment. They were too God-intoxicated to be astronomically intimidated. They brought an end to such ancient evils as infanticide and gladiatorial contest." (Letter from a Birmingham Jail)

In the sting of a prophet, in the open listening for God's voice, we are called. God is speaking … are you listening?