“God First and God Alone”
By Brian Flanagan, Fiat Ventures
Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Last night a friend of mine had a birthday party at the local hatchet throwing lanes. Yes, you read that right. I didn’t even know that was a thing. But now it’s my new favorite. And I’m actually quite good! As we were leaving, some of the group decided they were going to go to a restaurant down the street and keep the evening going.
I knew, however, that my wife and fifteen-month-old son were home awaiting my return, so I decided to pass on the nachos and get home to help with diapers and dishes. And I may or may not have made my own nachos in the toaster oven after he went to sleep.
The vocation that I have as a husband and a father means that I have to put my family above everything else – whether it’s my job, doing service or ministry, and even spending time with friends. And I wouldn’t have it any other way! I knew as I was changing my son’s diaper that I was right where I was supposed to be.
But in the Second Reading this week, St. Paul reminds us of another vocation – the call to be Single for the Lord. “An unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord. But a married man is anxious about the things of the world, how he may please his wife, and he is divided.” This is the call to be a priest, a brother, a nun, a sister, or a single person committing their life 100% to God first and God alone.
When your grandparents were little, they would have been well aware of this vocation – their parishes and Catholic schools were staffed by lots of priests, religious sisters and brothers, and they probably even took some time to ask the question, “What if God is calling me to this vocation?”
These days we may not be as surrounded by those who are living out this vocation, but it’s no less amazing of a call! There is a group of six guys who were a few years behind me in college, all of whom are currently in formation to become priests or religious brothers. When I talk to them, I see that they’re still the same goofy guys I knew in college who played lots of video games and loved watching college football; but there’s also something different there now. And I see how incredibly happy and fulfilling it is for them to live out God’s plan.
In addition to being totally fulfilled by God alone, they’re also able to put God first in a way that most of us can’t. A priest, because he’s not responsible for a family of his own, is free to go to the hospital at 2am to give someone the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. A religious brother or sister working in college campus ministry is free to meet with students for coffee to talk about faith, whether it’s 9 am or 9 pm. A monk or a nun in a monastery is able to live a life of work and prayer, being completely focused on God.
So why aren’t there more priests, sisters, and brothers around these days? Well it’s not that God isn’t calling people to this life anymore. It’s actually that people are being called but not hearing it. But whether God is calling us to this vocation to be Single for the Lord, or calling us to marriage and family life, we need to pray about it and ask God for wisdom in discerning our own vocations.
It’s also important to remember that it’s all about taking the “next step”. Just like you wouldn’t propose marriage to someone on a first date (even though after my first date with my now-wife, I told my sister I was going to marry her), you don’t have to sign on the dotted line to become a priest when you start looking into it. There is a whole process of next steps to make sure God really is calling you, and that you’re a good fit for the religious community or diocese.
So if you’ve never thought about it, pray and ask the question, “Lord, what’s the next step for me in figuring out what you’re calling me to?” Then a few years down the road whether you’re changing diapers or absolving sins in confession, you’ll know you’re right where God has called you to be.