Is it I Lord?

At the time I wrote this I was heavily discerning vocation and had really gotten into JPII.

 Is it I Lord?  We have all heard the song where this line is asked of God.  Every individual must ask this same question to the Lord.  Is it I?  I speak here of vocation, of a calling.  Many, when they hear of vocation immediately think of priests, nuns, and brothers.  This is not it!  Yes, all in religious life are called by God to serve Him and others, but everyone is called to service.  Every human being is called into service of some sort.  Teachers are called to serve, they serve the administrators, but most of all they serve the young, and guide them, and teach the future generations of humankind.  Police and fire workers serve the community, by keeping peace and aiding those who need their services, as well as emergency medical personnel.  Public workers also serve and help the community.  Doctors and medical staffs aide those who are ill, and help to nurture and cure them.  There are also those who serve their country in many ways.  Anyone who serves and gives to the greater good has a calling to do good things.  Most importantly, a calling is a call to help others. 

As we go through life we feel called in many different directions and fields.  As we grow however we fine-tune ourselves and we come to understand what we are truly called to do.  When fine tuning our receptiveness to the call we must make ourselves receptive to the Lord as well.  Many think, “Surly it is not I,” but it could be!  When Pope John Paul II was a young man he was asked about the priesthood, he had remarked that he did not feel worthy.  Some years later, in a similar situation when he was a Cardinal, he was asked about the papacy, he also remarked that he felt unworthy about that.  John Paul II, called “The great”, one of only three Popes to be given this honor is only bestowed on popularity of its usage, and without a doubt, he was and is great.  So we must too all open out hearts and minds to the Lord and look and listen deeply.  We must ask ourselves, “What does God want me to do?”  This is important, also it is important to do something we want to do, sometimes, that makes you want to work, and love what is in that work.

In our search through life we must pray, and ask that God guides us on our paths, so we may do what He wants.  No matter how rough the path, remember, God will not leave you, He is always there.  Also remember that God is the driving force in all things, for He created all, and rules all, it is when evil intercedes, and we stray from the path when things go wrong.  Due to the evil in recent scandals in the mother church vocations have declined, and many parishes have been forced to close and merge.  Here in the west the faith is not dying, however it is not flourishing either.  We must use these losses, and hurts to do good, come together as a church and strive to be together and live the faith as one church.  We must put forth the effort so that this may become a reality.  Faith and practice is slipping in today’s society, modernization and the sin that comes from it is turning many away from the church and from God.  It is the job of every believer to reaffirm the faith; we must all lead by example, just as Christ did.  We must all find the calling in ourselves and encourage others to hear theirs. 

What is a calling, we ask ourselves, or we ask others.  It is important to close no doors to opportunity, no matter how small it seems.  For once the door closes, it may never open again.  “Carpe Diem” Seize the Day, when opportunities come, jump!  It only knocks once.  It may not show itself fully, which is why we must look hard for it, search, and listen.  Times are easier now for us to pick and choose paths for life.  Use that freedom to your advantage for positive decisions, good, sound, moral decisions.  Pick the right path, and stick to it, do not stray.  It is important to look deep in yourself, into your soul, to do what the heart desires.  For the Lord is in your heart, listen to the Lord, let Him guide you, do not resist.  Although the times may become hard and difficult, be not afraid. 

It is also important to not over emphasize what it is that we do, unless it is called for.  I am not saying to sell yourself short in any manner, but to be humble, no not indulge in the falsities of pride or gluttony.  Do what needs to be done, and then some, but do not search for praise for what you have done in surplus.  The praise for that will come after, in the Lord’s prosperity and in your own self-gratification.  When you are praised, receive it and move on, do not linger in that false glory and do not loathe in yourself.  Thinking of one’s self as higher than others leads to corruption and impurity of deeds.  Do not look for personal gain, but do good things for the prosperity of others.  Do not ask what you can accomplish for you, but what can be done to better the world.  Even one small action at a time, whatever you can do to better and give back to the world and humanity will be in return great.  He will see it, and He will be pleased. 

When you are called, you are called to the service of others, not yourself.  Take nothing for granted in life.  Everything we have is a glorious gift from above.  If it is hard, than think of those who do not have what you do, and how they must live.  Even the smallest discomfort to you may be a great burden, but could be a great relief to another.  Always be conscious of other’s deprivation and need of what you have plentiful.  God calls, if you are listening, you will hear, respond, and you shall receive the fruits of your own labor from He who has sent you.

When called to a vocation in the church you not only give to others service, but you give your life.  John Paul II said, “To give my life’: this is the only ideal worthy to be lived to the end, whatever the cost.  This is also the way of joy, as Jesus said: ‘it is more blessed to give than receive.” To give one’s life for others is the greatest gift you can bestow on anyone.  Christ Himself gave his life willingly for the forgiveness of sins.  Whenever something seems tough and you are in a bind, think of Him.  Life is the greatest gift of all.  It has been given to us all.  Some are called to give back this great gift.  To serve your community in such a great role has its own fruits of satisfaction to help others; it bears the greatest of opportunities to serve God, and to do His work.  You can do the greatest things with the help of God.  God gives us the strength we need to succeed.  We must harness this, and use it.  We must know that we have been given this great strength.  We need the willpower and determination that only we can provide ourselves.  For with the strength of God, and our own willpower, there is nothing that cannot be done.  If we do not know God’s aide and presence we will fail.  To know His presence is the key to this formula, if we do not have it we will not rise above the hardships and challenge. 

In closing, I ask one simple request to the reader and listener.  Look, look deep, listen, and listen closely, to yourself and to your surroundings. You are the master of your own destiny, you can choose whatever it is that you want to do with your life.  God gives us this opportunity, this gift of free will; He also did so with a purpose.  In your looking and listening see what it is that you feel drawn to.  Feel what it is that you are pulled to.  This is what you should do, and listening to yourself and to God is the only way of knowing this certainty.  Anyone can do anything they want, as long as they so believe, but when you are drawn you are called by a greater force, the force that is.