Then the woman gave birth to a son and named him Samson; and the child grew up, and Yahweh blessed him.
And the Spirit of Yahweh began to stir him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
— Judges 13:24-25 (LSB)
“How do I know if it is of the LORD? If He is moving me, not merely my own desires?” “Often, there is a restlessness; a sensation that God is moving you on. ” This is a conversation I once had with a friend, about knowing God’s will, and more narrowly, how to discern my will from His. At another time, another friend recounted a conversation he had had with, I believe, one of the Elders of his church: “Can you place your head on the pillow, while thinking of those people?” “No. ”“Then you must go! ”There is more to it than this when it comes to determining God’s will; the specific thing He wants you to do. Some of these things are very simple: read His revealed will in the Word, and simply obey. But when it came to uprooting our lives in order to go to another mission field, I wanted to minimise the subjective elements of the ‘where’ to obey God’s will: to make disciples of all nations.
It was last night (I’m writing this on 24th June), reading the passage above to my family, that it arrested me: Samson’s public ministry began when “the Spirit of Yahweh began to stir him”. I immediately made the connection to the conversations I mention above.
Let’s be clear: this is a historically unique instance. Samson prefigures Christ (read the whole of Judges 13) in striking ways. When I think about my ministry, I was called to the UK, then to Madeira, to serve Christ and His people.
These are not everyday experiences. Yet: is your spirit not stirred daily to follow your Lord? Is He not stirring you to obedience, in small and big things, even against pressures from colleagues, family, and friends? Can you rest without doing His will? As Christians, we must obey the Lord we love and Who has saved us. If you know nothing of this, I don’t believe you are saved; then that’s what you need to sort out first. The presence of the Spirit of the Lord is the sign of life in Christ.
“For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” — Romans 8:14 (LSB)
Calix
July 2026
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