New York City is a place where it is said , “If it can be found, you can find it in New York.” Once when we were visiting the New York Macy’s store, Jack was wearing a fedora, the hat he usually wore when shopping. A well dressed man approached him and asked eagerly where he had bought his hat. Jack was surprised, as we were in what surely must be one of the world’s biggest market cities. He told the man, “I bought it in Houston, Texas.” The man’s face fell with disappointment. I was surprised, too, because New Yorkers seldom seem to display the social instinct of talking to strangers about their hat on Herald Square in Manhattan. Jack and I were quite elated. It was the touch of an unexpected “honor.”

Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy . So Eli told Samuel, “Go, and lie down, and if He calls you, say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”

Then Samuel said “Speak, for your servant is listening.” (1 Samuel3:9&10)

The call of Samuel was so unexpected that it took three calls before Eli, the high priest, recognized the call to his protege, Samuel. The Bible asserts that there had been no message from God in many years, and so it seems that none was expected: In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions. (1 Samuel 3:1)

It was an extremely poignant moment for Eli, as he must have known the honor which had fallen upon Samuel in receiving a visit from the Lord himself. It would take time for Samuel to live into this relationship which had been opened up for him and which would last a lifetime. We can only imagine his sensations as he realized the power and significance of his nighttime encounter with the Lord, knowing also that no one else of his acquaintance had had such an experience. It was the defining moment of his life.

The surprising “Honor” that Jack received in New York is barely worth remembering, though it gave us both a glow that stays with the memory of the visit. The unexpected honor that Samuel received became the hallmark of his life that shaped his character, his career, and his lifestyle. The lonely boy, contacted by his creator, found fulfillment and meaning in his life that guided and blessed both him and all of Israel, as well as you and me. Christ made Samuel’s unexpected honor available to all of us.

Love in Him,

Prue