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Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread. At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his room; the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ and he said, ‘Here I am!’ and ran to Eli, and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ But he said, ‘I did not call; lie down again.’ So he went and lay down. The Lord called again, ‘Samuel!’ Samuel got up and went to Eli, and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ But he said, ‘I did not call, my son; lie down again.’ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. The Lord called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli, and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, ‘Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” ’ So Samuel went and lay down in his place. Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ And Samuel said, ‘Speak, for your servant is listening.’ Then the Lord said to Samuel, ‘See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears of it tingle. On that day I will fulfil against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. For I have told him that I am about to punish his house for ever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be expiated by sacrifice or offering for ever.’ Samuel lay there until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. But Eli called Samuel and said, ‘Samuel, my son.’ He said, ‘Here I am.’ Eli said, ‘What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also, if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.’ So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. Then he said, ‘It is the Lord; let him do what seems good to him.’ As Samuel grew up, the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was a trustworthy prophet of the Lord. (1Samuel 2:1-20)
Good day, dear Friend! May this find you alert, awake, and open to God's voice. I believe we are guilty of only praying half-way; We speak, but never say, "Okay, Lord, it's YOUR turn." May we listen, truly listen today to what God may be asking of us.
The story of the prophet Samuel is a most interesting one; son of a woman who begged God to bless her with a child and her promise was that if God shared one with her, she would give him back to God. And thus we find the boy Samuel "ministering to the Lord under Eli." Eli's story is another interesting, but sad one. He was the priest and prophet, but as he grew older and his own sons grew older, the boys took over and misused the office of their father, thus Samuel coming into the picture.
The writer sets the stage by telling us that "the word of the Lord was rare in those days." And that is not surprising given what was going on in the holy places. Greed instead of grace was being shown. Money over mercy; cash over compassion; the personal gain of so-called servants over prophetic warnings. It took the innocent heart of a boy to be open to what God wanted to do next. It's during the night while the boy slept in the temple that he heard the voice of God calling. God calls him by name, "Samuel! Samuel!" Note the urgency. The boy thinks it is Eli calling and runs to say, "Here I am!" The old man says he did not call. After the third such occurrence that Eli realizes that God is calling the boy. He tells him, "Go, lie down; and if He calls you, you shall say, 'Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." Notice the posture given the boy about listening to God. He was to respond in the affirmative and to say that he was God's servant. Helpful for our prayer lives, don't you think? We are ready, we are listening, and we are (or should be) God's servants. The next time it happens, Samuel says that the priest told him, and God speaks to Samuel.
It should be noted that most calls likes this in the Old Testament, were calls for God's people to be in the right relationship with God and with each other. God desires that even today from us. We should be attentive to God's loving instruction and direction, especially if we know we are in the wrong or have feelings of doubt about where we are in our spiritual life. We note that the old prophet heard that word and replied that the Lord should do what seemed good to Him. Another way of saying, "May God's will be done; not mine."
It does not matter how old or young we are, God still calls. There is always something yet to do for the good of God and God's people; we should position ourselves as those ready and wiling to do the bidding of the Lord. May this be reflected in our lives today.
PRAYER: Loving God, as we pray, we pray for openness to Your leading. May Your will be done in my life and the lives of those around me. Show me my role in all this, and let me fulfill it, for I seek to please only You. Grant me listening ears and a caring heart; for I pray in Christ Jesus' strong name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Be the prophet (God's mouthpiece) people need to hear today!
Eradio Valverde
