Introduction

In this final week of Everyday Missions, we take stock of all that God cares about, and all that God calls us to care for. In our particular church community, FCC cares about the displaced and the refugee, the poor, hungry, homeless, trafficked, and those without educational opportunities. But there are many more groups of people and areas that you can direct your attention to. Where will you serve?

1 the BOY SAMUEL. What does Samuel’s name mean? See 1 Sa 1:20. What should the reader think/envision every time Samuel’s name is used?

 1 THE WORD OF THE LORD WAS RARE IN THOSE DAYS; VISIONS WERE NOT WIDESPREAD. We take many things for granted in life. We often do not appreciate the goodness of these things until we lose them—good health, caring parents, freedom, friendships, etc. One good that is taken for granted by some, and unknown to others, is the word of God. Sometimes God is silent (Woodhouse 73). What are some ways God communicates to his people today? How have you handled God’s silence?

2 ELI, WHOSE EYESIGHT HAD BEGUN TO GROW DIM SO THAT HE COULD NOT SEE. The narrative details are laden with symbolism. Eli’s eyes—and by extension his spiritual insight—were “so weak that he could barely see” (Bergen 86).

2 WAS LYING DOWN IN HIS ROOM. In a moment we will see that Samuel was “lying down” too. However, Eli’s “lying down” will continue through this night, whereas the young Samuel will be very active. Old Eli, lying down, is part of a picture that is being built up of a man too old to do much at all. All we have seen him do in the whole story so far is sit, speak, hear, and now lie down (1 Samuel 1:9, 14; 2:22; cf. 4:13, 18)! (Woodhouse 75-76). Looking at your own heart, wallet, and schedule, are you more like Eli or like Samuel in your attentiveness to the voice of the Lord?

3 THE LAMP OF GOD HAD NOT YET GONE OUT. The menorah in the tabernacle was to remain lit all night (Ex 27:21; Lev 24:1–4), never to be extinguished (Matthews et al. 1 Sa 3:3). If the lamp had not yet gone out, it was still nighttime. On the other hand, in the darkness represented by God’s silence and Eli’s blindness, the news that God’s lamp “had not yet gone out” suggests that God had not yet abandoned his people. There was still hope (2 Sam 21:17; 1 Kings 11:36; 2 Kings 8:19) (Woodhouse 76). How does this symbolism of hope and God’s faithfulness encourage you?

3 AND SAMUEL WAS LYING DOWN IN THE TEMPLE OF THE LORD, WHERE THE ARK OF GOD WAS. This positions the youth not only spatially but also spiritually; he was of all Israelites closest to the Lord’s throne (cf. 4:4; Num 7:89) (Bergen 86). While you may or may not feel close to the Lord, what do you do to situate yourself as close as possible to God?

How old were you when you first connected with God in a meaningful way? What are the main ways you’ve experienced God’s direction in your life?

4 THEN THE LORD CALLED, “SAMUEL! SAMUEL!” AND HE SAID, “HERE I AM!” The voice is so clear that at first Samuel thinks Eli is calling him (Knowles 134). Samuel might have supposed that he had to help the half-blind Eli (Lange et al. 88).

5 AND RAN TO ELI. Notice Samuel’s energetic responsiveness. It was immediate and fast (Woodhouse 77). How quick are we to respond to people’s needs or cry for help? Or to God’s call?

6 BUT HE SAID, “I DID NOT CALL, MY SON; LIE DOWN AGAIN.” Eli turned Samuel away, perhaps because Eli was blind to the possibility of the Lord’s revealing himself in a personal manner (Bergen 86). How open are you to God speaking and acting in ways that go beyond your expectations?

6 MY SON. Eli’s affectionate way of speaking to Samuel as “my son” is poignant. His actual sons had defied him and brought God’s condemnation (Woodhouse 77). Do you mentor anyone? Have you ever been mentored by someone? What have you learned about the process of mentoring?

7 NOW SAMUEL DID NOT YET KNOW THE LORD, AND THE WORD OF THE LORD HAD NOT YET BEEN REVEALED TO HIM. This is not to say that Samuel had no knowledge of who the Lord was or of what he desired from his people, but rather that he had not yet experienced God speaking to him in such a direct manner (Vannoy 63). It was a gloomy time, poor in revelation, as in exemplary religious life. For Eli, the High-priest, was weak, his sons defiled the sanctuary, the people served idols, and the Philistines ruled oppressively (Lange et al. 88-89). Samuel did not expect God to speak this way.

The strangest thing about these words is that they are almost exactly the same as the critical words about the “worthless men,” Hophni and Phinehas in 1 Samuel 2:12: “They did not know the LORD” (Woodhouse 77). What might be the difference between Samuel’s ignorance and Hophni and Phinehas’?

On the one hand, in the case of Hophni and Phinehas, we see that it is not possible to know God at the same time as defying him. You cannot know God and live in disobedience to God. On the other hand, in the case of Samuel we see that it is only possible to know God when God acts to make himself known (Woodhouse 77-78). How do the portraits of Eli’s biological and spiritual son impact your understanding of Christian discipleship?

8 THE LORD CALLED SAMUEL AGAIN, A THIRD TIME. God waits patiently for Eli to understand the situation (Goldingay 32). Do you conceive of God as a patient God?

8 THEN ELI PERCEIVED THAT THE LORD WAS CALLING THE BOY. As Pastor Sarah preached, Eli had the prophetic imagination to know that God was calling to the boy. He helped Samuel hear and respond to the voice of the Lord. When we cannot see past the believable, we miss out on the miracle. If we stay in the realm of possibility, we miss out on God’s capability. If Eli had not recognized God speaking, Samuel would have gone back to sleep, he would not have grown up to change Israel. It took Eli’s prophetic imagination to have Samuel’s breakthrough. Don’t let our present vision make us believe that that’s all there will ever be. God can bring about change…through us. We do not serve a God who stops at the difficult, or leaves things be. God entered our world, died for it, breaks the chain of evil, and saves it. How restricted or expansive is your prophetic imagination to see and bring about the change that God desires? Do you believe that God can and does do the impossible?

9 IF HE CALLS YOU, YOU SHALL SAY, ‘SPEAK, LORD, FOR YOUR SERVANT IS LISTENING.’ How would you have felt if you were in Samuel’s place?

10 NOW THE LORD CAME AND STOOD THERE, CALLING AS BEFORE. The voice becomes a vision: Yhwh came and stood before Samuel. In v15, we’re told that Samuel saw God in a “vision” (Lange et al. 89). How would you react if you saw the figure of the Lord Almighty standing before you, calling your name? How does God appear before us today?

11 WILL MAKE BOTH EARS OF ANYONE WHO HEARS OF IT TINGLE. This vivid turn of phrase occurs a couple of times later in the Old Testament (2 Ki 21:12; Jer 19:3). Do you know the experience of being so terrified that you cannot speak, and your lips quiver (Hab 3:16)? Here a similar sensation is described, in the ears of someone hearing terrible news (Woodhouse 79). Why might the prophetic word of the Lord be so terrible? To whom would it sound like terrible news?

13 HIS SONS WERE BLASPHEMING GOD, AND HE DID NOT RESTRAIN THEM. What was Eli’s sin? He neglected to perform his duty as father, high-priest, and judge. He should have severely chastised and punished his sons. Yet, he knew their crimes and let them go unpunished (Lange et al. 89). Within our own spheres of influence, how have we upheld our duties? Have we let sins go on unconfronted?

See 1 Samuel 2:12–17. What are the priests of Yhwh supposed to do, and what did the priests of Shiloh and Eli’s sons do, instead? There is clearly a connection between the rarity of the word of the Lord and the failings of the priesthood (Woodhouse 74). Is this pattern cropping in our own place and time?

15 SAMUEL LAY THERE UNTIL MORNING...SAMUEL WAS AFRAID TO TELL THE VISION TO ELI. Samuel did not enter into his role as the Lord’s spokesman without hesitation (Bergen 87). Do you feel fear or trepidation as you consider serving God’s mission?

21 THE LORD REVEALED HIMSELF TO SAMUEL. What can we do to stay open to the word of the Lord?

Conclusion

As Pastor Sarah preached, everyday missions requires prophetic imagination. We cannot go back to sleep, like Eli did. Like Samuel, our eyes have been opened to the needs in our world. God is calling. How will you respond to God’s call to everyday missions?