Who Is This?

Introduction

God speaks to each of us individually. Sometimes it's a still small voice or a feeling deep in your heart or soul. Maybe it's a vision while you're sleeping, the words you read in a book, or the words spoken by a friend. You can hear God in many different ways. However, sometimes, even with all these amazing and unique ways we can hear God's voice, we doubt whether it's really Him. It's something I find myself struggling with and worrying about a lot. I question whether it's really Him or if it's just me, just myself and my own thoughts. Am I imagining it? Or worse, is it the devil trying to tempt me? Trying to drag me away? How can I tell? How can you tell?
        Every day we are bombarded by voices. Positive and negative voices. Voices from outside and our own voices and thoughts. It can get overwhelming and when the time comes when God decides to speak to us, He can get lost in the mix or we have trouble realizing it's Him. Even Samuel, the student of the priest Eli in the Bible, had trouble discerning God's voice. In 1 Samuel 3:4-5 it says:

"Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, 'Here I am.' And he ran to Eli and said, 'Here I am; you called me.' But Eli said, 'I did not call; go back and lie down.' So he went and lay down."

This happened two more times, each time Samuel going to Eli, before Eli realized that it was God speaking to Samuel and he instructed the boy to:

"Go and lie down, and if He calls you, say, 'Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.'"

Samuel did so and spent the rest of the night talking to the Lord. (1 Samuel 3:1-10) In this (hopefully somewhat) short study I did, I'm going to point out God's voice, why it's important to listen for it, and the two main voices (at least, that I've noticed) to try to obscure His. 

The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions. One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, “Here I am.” And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down. Again the Lord called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” “My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. A third time the Lord called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’ ” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
(1 Samuel 3:1‭-‬10)