“The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions.” 1 Samuel 3.1
1 Samuel 3 begins one of my favorite interactions between God and a human. I love the calling by God and Samuel’s response. In my next post, I will share and write more about this particular meeting. But for now, I want to focus solely on verse 1 and its significance.
First, we read that the boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. We know Eli was being led astray by his sons, and it was more their doing than his. However, I don’t think Eli was entirely at fault. He did, after all, influence Samuel and mentored him (as did the Lord) in how to minister before God.
Second, Samuel’s actions, as stated here, are exactly what he was born to do—minister before God, offer up the offerings in worship, and conduct himself well by giving praise, honor, and respect to God in the tabernacle. Samuel’s actions were focused on God and bringing Him glory.
Third, God’s word was “rare,” and there were not many visions. In other words, God did not speak to many people, and not many people were receiving visions from the Lord. Why? Perhaps the people were not seeking God. The only person who was, as mentioned here, was Samuel. God appeared to the one who was truly seeking to do His will.
God is about to do an incredible work, not only in the life of Samuel but in Israel as a whole. The nation will rise up, love God, and reject God, but the Lord will not be silent. And He does all this through one young boy who is about God’s business.
Do we want the Lord to move in us and through us? Do we want a nation to respond in love, seeking the Lord, finding comfort in His grace, and forgiveness in His redemption? Do we want the Holy Spirit to wreck us, love us, change us, and use us? If so, let’s be about His business. It doesn’t mean that you have to sit in a church worshipping God. You can be about His work in many arenas and with many people. But do His work—share His gospel, proclaim His goodness.
As we will learn from Samuel, God used the boy who was focused on serving the Lord. Let’s position ourselves to have the same impact and to be used in mighty ways by the God who loves us, calls us, and redeems us.
“O Lord God, you are good. Thank you for loving us. Thank you for your radical nature of salvation, grace, and love. Thank you for allowing us to know you and to work alongside you for the redemption of humanity. Bring Your Kingdom to us, O Lord! Allow it to be among us as You have promised. Help us to walk in step with the Spirit. For You are good, and Your love endures forever.” Amen