Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ And Samuel said, ‘Speak, for your servant is listening.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, October 12, 2025
by Pr. Matthias Lorimor, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: In a world full of voices, we are called to listen for the voice of God.
Although Samuel and Eli’s back-and-forth “You called me,” “I didn’t; go to bed!” may at first seem like a humorous skit from a sit-com, a very serious question lurks behind it. How do you recognize God’s voice in a world full of voices? Just think about all the voices we hear on a daily basis; voices on the news describing all that’s going wrong, the boss’s voice ordering us to be more productive while adding more to our To-Do list, advertising voices telling us we’d be happier if we had this or that, the list goes on. The world is full of voices ready to give us all kinds of words for what to do, how to act, even who we are. Maybe we can sympathize with Samuel hearing the voice of God and running to Eli thinking it’s just another worldly voice with worldly words.
Given all the voices and words in our world, it’s significant the scripture says Samuel didn’t recognize God’s voice at first because he did not yet know it (3:7). Sometimes you have to learn how to listen for the Word of God through all the clamor of the world. And while it initially brought a very difficult truth, over the course of his life it would be that single voice of God that Samuel would keep listening for in order to hear words of real truth, purpose, and grace that he needed in a world full of empty words. Perhaps if we are willing, with practice and patience, we might learn to hear that same divine voice that is still speaking somewhere beneath the bombardment of voices we face each day. And perhaps if we are attentive, with time and faith, we might learn to let that voice shape our own.
