“Samuel, Samuel!”
Don’t you hate when something wakes you up in the middle of the night?
“Samuel!”
Our bodies are amazing tools being able to shake off deep sleep in a millisecond and instantaneously be fully awake and aware.
“SAMUEL!”
Of course, for us guys it takes longer than a millisecond. But for most of our wives, a slight cough, a distant moan, an imperceptible ‘mommy’ and our wives jump up to attend to a child in the middle of the night.
“Samuel!”
We don’t know what time of the night it was, but we do know a young man—whose mother committed him to the Lord—was in training and he was with the priest who was preparing him for service with the Lord. Unlike a lot of guys, Samuel did wake up and Samuel responded.
“Here I am.”
What Samuel assumed was that his mentor, a priest named Eli had called out in the night and he responded by running to Eli to see what was wrong. Nothing was wrong. Eli didn’t call him. That’s embarrassing. Samuel headed back to bed.
Once again he hears, “Samuel!!”
Are you kidding? Samuel got up a second time headed to Eli and told him, “Here I am; you called me.” And guess what? Eli didn’t call him. I’m thinking at this moment there are two frustrated people. One waking up to someone calling his name and not knowing where the call was coming from and Eli wondering what was going on in Samuel’s head. 3 times the same scenario unfolds. 3 times the same interaction occurs, but after the third ‘name-calling,’ Eli realized, God was the one trying to get Samuel’s attention. The final ‘call’ in the dark was followed by a young man responding back to God with a willing and receptive heart.
God’s call is personal, powerful and precious. I love the fact that God doesn’t design some ‘cookie cutter’ approach to ‘setting a person aside’ to do the work of ministry.
Many refer to this interaction between Samuel and God as his ‘calling.’ The moment a consecrated young man—realized God had more than casual plans for his life. In our day, we’d refer to this interaction between God and Samuel as God’s ‘calling’ on his life. There is a word in the Hebrew that describes this event. The Hebrew word is qara` which means: to summon, invite, call for, proclaim.¹ It describes God’s pronouncement in the life of an individual specifically setting that person aside for the work of God. The idea is simple to explain but it is very personal and complex for all those who have experienced this ‘calling’ in their life. God draws near to an individual and ‘pricks’ the heart, mind, and conscience of that person. This ‘initiation’ of God occurs in various ways with various people at various seasons in their lives. But the essence of this ‘call’ is that God is ‘setting them aside’ for a specific purpose. Why is that so important?
In my early years of ministry, lots of the ‘older’ guys would talk about the power and the essence of their ‘call’. They would say, “I remember the day. I remember the time. I remember exactly what I was doing when God called me”. Over the years, speaking with various pulpit committees, invariably, each one has asked two vital questions: tell us about your salvation experience; tell us about God’s call on your life. I’ve shared those stories many times in the last 43 years.
God’s call is personal, powerful and precious. I love the fact that God doesn’t design some ‘cookie cutter’ approach to ‘setting a person aside’ to do the work of ministry. It’s a special moment and an experience that sets an indelible marker in someone’s life from that day forward.
Samuel’s ‘call’ is classic and I’m sure, he never forgot that night. He never forgot God’s message for him and the message he would share with Eli. I’m sure—as was in my case—there was an eerie feeling of standing on holy ground and wondering, “God, are you sure you want someone like me?” Samuel was a kid. Moses questioned God’s choice citing his own inability to speak. Isaiah hit the floor.
His reaction seemed to mimic my own feelings when God met with me. I understand completely the emotion and the moment of being ‘undone!’ Why would God call me? Why did God choose me? I remember those feelings. I remember the emotions and my own confusion as I shared with my parents what God told me. We were first generation followers of Christ and we looked at each other not knowing what to do or say. I was blown away by God and had no clue what I should do next.
Yes, God called, but what I didn’t understand both in my calling and in the advice I received from older saints is that ministry is hard.
So what is so important about THE call? It gets back to what those ‘old school’ pastors told me years ago. The ‘call,’ according to them, would be THE event, THE impetus that would get me through the tough seasons of ministry. I didn’t even know what that meant. I knew God called me which meant I was going to be the next Chuck Swindoll, Chuck Smith, Billy Graham, Alistair Begg or Adrian Rogers. These were my heroes and as I watched their lives and ministries—I couldn’t wait to preach to thousands, have God’s protection in my life 24/7, never have a bad day and see people saved every time I spoke.
That’s what I envisioned my call from God to be. And to be honest, I couldn’t wait! I naively thought that being a servant of God meant I’d have no more struggles, trials or difficulty because of course . . . I was working for the Lord. (At this point, ALL of you need to stop laughing, immediately! I did say I was naïve). Yes, God called, but what I didn’t understand both in my calling and in the advice I received from older saints is that ministry is hard.
I was raised hanging and finishing drywall, pouring concrete, building commercial buildings. I know what a ‘hard day’s night’ feels like. Most days I came home from a long day of physical labor and knew I’d accomplished what I set out to do. But I also knew what it meant to sleep well because I was exhausted. Those were demanding days, but they didn’t compare to the difficulties of ministry.
People’s expectations, daily demands, fickle congregations, spiritual attacks, studying when you don’t want to study, the constant strain of being the ‘adult’ in the room, bad sermons, good sermons no one seemed to listen to, the demand to write something fresh—in depth—Holy Spirit inspired every . . . single . . . week to the same people. Each one of you have other items you would add to that list but the day came when I realized . . . ministry was different than I imagined. It was hard.
God’s call has given me direction and purpose. I’m where I am today because over and over in my life I realize: God called me for a purpose. I will show up again for work MONDAY, because I belong to Him.
I don’t know how many times in my life I longed to go back to hanging sheets of rock over sitting down with a disgruntled parishioner who was upset because the leadership team changed the brand of toilet paper in the bathrooms. What happened to people being saved every week? When you’re trying to follow God’s leading and make disciples with people who aren’t interested in being disciples, those moments have the potential of backing you against the wall and planting a seed in your heart that says, “Walk away NOW.”
A professor in seminary concluded one semester with these closing words . . . never resign on Mondays. Why? Monday is the day you analyze, reflect, stomp your feet, and shake your head wondering if anyone ever listens. Monday is the day you kick yourself because you called Zacchaeus—Zachariah 17 times in your message and when people giggled you couldn’t figure out how you’d blown it. Bad days abound. So, what keeps you steady during the difficult days of ministry? What keeps you from throwing your hands in the air and determining, ‘I’m going to be a greeter at Walmart?’ What keeps you from resigning on Monday? (It’s got to be more than a suggestion by a professor!). For me, I seem to always find myself going back. As Andre Crouch once wrote—take me back, take me back dear Lord, to the place where I first received you. That has been my foundation. My buoyancy. I remember when God called me.
We all struggle and think at times: these people hate me. And then, God answers: but, I called you. Don’t give up. But, these people are blind, deaf, stubborn and they worry about toilet paper. God answers: But, I called you, remember? I set you aside, remember? I determined your path. But, I’m not Furtick, Groeschel, or Stanley. Why should I show up next week? Patiently, God answers: Because I called you, just as you are. I’ve placed you, right where you are at. Trust me. Follow me. Learn from me. I called you and I don’t make mistakes.
What I’ve come to realize is that being in ministry for 43+ years has nothing to do with Bart. If that was the pivotal tool in my life I’d have left a long time ago. God’s call has given me direction and purpose. I’m where I am today because over and over in my life I realize: God called me for a purpose. I will show up again for work MONDAY, because I belong to Him.
Bart Poole is the Lead Pastor at Trinity Baptist Church in Aurora, CO)
[1]Brown, F., Driver, S. R., & Briggs, C. A. 2000. Enhanced Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon. Strong’s, TWOT, and GK references Copyright 2000 by Logos Research Systems, Inc. (electronic ed.). Logos Research Systems: Oak Harbor, WA
