Life is a funny thing. We begin to feel like we have things sorted out; like we are actually making progress in figuring out this or that. Or we finally discover we are called to change one thing or another. And then right before we know what has hit us, we are back on our butts, totally dazed and confused. Take Samuel from the first reading for example. Samuel felt he had it figured out. God had chosen Saul to rule the Israelites, Samuel had appointed Saul on God’s orders, and before he knew what was happening, Saul had been rejected and Samuel was left once again with a people with no leader.

Yet there was hope for Samuel. It was through this situation, through the despair of the Israelites and Samuel that God was able to bring a young, lowly shepherd, a son of Jesse into the throne. And it was through this appointment that God set into motion the scriptures that would foretell the coming of His Son. Now did Samuel know at the time that by following God, even though it seemed hopeless and frustrating, that he would play a role in this? Probably not, but he did it anyway. Samuel trusted God, just as we should trust God. Samuel believed that God would not lead His people astray and so Samuel followed God. And God did wonders.

Just as God said to Samuel in the first reading, “Not as man sees does God see, because he sees the appearance but the LORD looks into the heart.” We too must not judge the situations we are placed in by their surface appearance. We must look deeper into the situation, into the heart of our agony and suffering to fully understand how God will use us to bring about His Kingdom.