And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli…and Samuel was laid down to sleep; that the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I.

And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou callest me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down.

And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again.

Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed to him.

And the LORD called Samuel again, the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child.

Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth.

1 Samuel 3:1-9

Samuel had been working in the tabernacle under the tutelage of Eli, the high priest and judge of Israel. Yet, like the sons of Eli, Samuel did not know the LORD. Whatever duties he was assigned was mundane, repetitive. The LORD had to call Samuel 3 times before Eli realized that it was God who was reaching out to Samuel.

When Samuel finally realized that it was the LORD calling him, his world literally changed. He would be delivering a prophecy to Eli, and it would be damning. And it would be the start of his service to the LORD as the last judge of Israel.

Stuck in the mundane? Sometimes in the darkness, is a voice calling out to us.

It may seem like the same old cycle of disappointments. Perhaps life’s issues are so close and so real you can’t see any way out of your present predicament.

But if you listen carefully – and the key word is listen – you may yet hear the voice of God.