7  Now Samuel did not yet know Yahweh, nor had the word of Yahweh yet been revealed to him. 

8  So Yahweh called Samuel again for the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli discerned that Yahweh was calling the young boy. 
1 Samuel 3:7

When You Don’t Recognize the Voice

There’s a certain comfort in clarity. When direction is unmistakable and the next step is obvious, we feel anchored. But much of life, and certainly much of spiritual formation, unfolds in spaces where clarity is not the starting point. In fact, some of the most transformative experiences are born in ambiguity—when we sense something is being asked of us, but can’t yet name who’s asking.

The third chapter of 1 Samuel gives us a subtle, unembellished picture of such a moment. It’s a transition story—but not the kind where the old leaves and the new arrives in triumph. It begins with scarcity. “In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions.” This was a spiritually starved time, and in that silence, God speaks. But not with a grand entrance. No thundering voice, no unmistakable command. He simply calls Samuel by name. And Samuel, earnestly, responds—to the wrong person.

Three times, God calls.
Three times, Samuel misattributes the voice to Eli, the priest who raised him.

This is not a case of disobedience. Samuel doesn’t resist God. He just doesn’t recognize Him. That nuance matters. Because it reveals a kind of spiritual immaturity we don’t often talk about—the kind that comes not from rebellion, but from inexperience. Samuel didn’t yet know the voice of the Lord. So when it came, he defaulted to what was familiar. In that moment, the divine sounded like the human authority he’d always obeyed.

And that, for many, is the reality of early discernment. The voice of God can come wrapped in a tone that feels familiar, close, even earthly. And without training in spiritual recognition, we respond sincerely—to the wrong source.

Repetition as Formation

What’s remarkable is what God does next. He calls again. He doesn’t withdraw, doesn’t correct harshly, doesn’t shift to someone more prepared. He simply repeats Himself. This, too, is formational. The repetition isn’t a failure of communication—it’s a training ground. Samuel is not just being called; he’s being taught how to be called.

It takes the guidance of Eli—ironically, a priest whose own spiritual acuity had dulled—to interpret the pattern. Once he realizes what’s happening, Eli offers Samuel a simple but powerful script: “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” This response is not magical. It is positional. It reflects a readiness not just to hear words, but to recognize their source. And with that, a boy becomes a prophet—not through revelation alone, but through a process of misrecognition, correction, and eventual alignment.

This should shift how we think about calling. We often assume calling comes with full understanding—that when God speaks, we’ll know it’s Him and what He wants. But biblically, recognition often follows the call, not the other way around. God initiates. We respond—often imperfectly. And over time, clarity grows not from louder volume, but from increased proximity and repeated exposure to the tone of His voice.

Staying Long Enough to Learn

This has wide implications. It means that not every delay in discernment is disobedience. Sometimes, we simply haven’t yet been shaped to recognize what God sounds like. His voice may come through people, patterns, or opportunities that don’t announce themselves as spiritual. And we may need to misrecognize a few times before we grow confident in our discernment.

But what matters most is posture. Samuel rose each time. He didn’t tune out the voice; he moved toward it. That kind of spiritual responsiveness—even in misdirection—creates space for God to keep speaking.

If you find yourself unsure whether what you’re sensing is from God, don’t rush to label the moment as failure. Stay near. Pay attention to what keeps repeating. Don’t assume that unfamiliarity means irrelevance. God may be calling you through a tone you’re still learning to trust. And if He is, He will be patient enough to call again.

Recognition will come. And when it does, the shift isn’t just in what you hear—but in who you know is speaking.

That’s when everything begins to change.