journey, one that requires you to leave what you know in
search of what you don’t know. Yes, there’s mystery to it,
but the way you go about it is by putting one foot in front of
the other. And when you are presented with an opportunity,
you may not just know. But you will have to act. And that
action is a little more complicated than we might think.
The Prophet Who Almost
Missed His Call
Three thousand years ago, four or five miles northwest of
Jerusalem in the hill country of Ephraim, there was a small
town called Ramah, where a man named Elkanah lived. He
had two wives, one who was infertile and the other who
reminded her of this constantly.
Once during a trip to the ancient city of Shiloh, the
barren wife Hannah was so plagued with shame that she
made a public vow. If she would become pregnant, she
would give her son to the high priest, dedicating his life to
religious service. Shortly after, she conceived a son and
named him Samuel. As soon as he was weaned, he was sent
to Shiloh to serve the priest Eli.
Samuel was a special boy, a gift to his parents who long
awaited his birth and a gift to Eli who only had disobedient
sons. He served the priest in the work that he did, and the