Doing It Your Own Way

“I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.”

 ― Nelson Mandela

As I likely mentioned before, I have been reading My Life With The Saints by Fr. James Martin, SJ, for an upcoming young adult book club meeting later this month. The book is structured so that each chapter focuses on one saint, what he/she is known for, important parts of his/her life, and Fr. Martin's own encounters with those saints.

What I wanted to know was if there was something similar about how or when or why each of the saints started (and kept on) working for God. As it turns out, there is no such trend - each saint found God's call for his life in his own way - St. Joan of Arc heard the voices of three saints; St. Therese had a desire to be a nun when she was 9 years old; Thomas Merton spent most of his life searching for something unaware of what he was truly searching for; St. Ignatius of Loyola was wounded in battle and during his recuperation ended up reading about the saints...

Again - I stress - there is no "formula" for finding a vocation or one's path to sainthood. 

Wouldn't it be nice if we could all hear God speaking directly to us or for us to be certain at an early age of what vocation God is calling each of us?

But it doesn't work like that.

God is calling each of us to be saints in our own way - not in the same way or manner as anyone else. 

This is both relieving and stressful - I know I am able to serve God as I am...but am I truly living as God intended? Is there something I am missing or not doing? When do we know for sure that we are serving in our vocation?

Let us ask ourselves, "How am I currently working to achieve my potential in service and love of others?" and let us answer ourselves honestly and vulnerably. And then there just might be a little more light on our paths.

Or, I suppose the worst thing is that we could be like Thomas Merton, searching yet striving all the while to please God.