Listen up!

”Lord, I'll embrace whatever it is you want me to do, but please, please let me know what it is.”

This prayer is a theme song of my life, something I have said for so long. Simply, “Lord, whatever you want me to do, I will do; you are just going to have to make it clear!”

I laugh when I think of how impatient, how naive I have been! Was God going to audibly stop me in my tracks and tell me exactly what He wants as I went about my life doing whatever I wanted without reallllllly consulting Him first?

Possibly. Yes, it’s possible. But is it likely?

Indeed, God has spoken into my heart so many times. But almost every single time, I have had to get silent first. Why? Because that is His first language, and that is how we discern.

He communicates to us in many ways, but in every way, we must be available. One of my most laughable memories is the silliness of how I once thought God speaks: “If He has something to say, He will say it. He hasn’t, so why is He hiding?”

Face palm.

Fun fact: in our relationship with God, if something goes wrong, it’s ALWAYS our fault. In my family, I can blame my parents or my brother; in my friendships, I can blame them; at work, I can blame coworkers; at Church, I can blame parishioners; in traffic, I can blame the jerk who cut in front of me.

But with God? Yeah…no. It’s my fault. Always.

I get asked a lot about discernment. “How do I know what God wants me to do?” or “How do I discern my vocation?” or “God hasn’t told me.”

A few things:

1. Ask yourself: have I prioritized my life so that God has a chance to speak to me? Meaning, is prayer the most important aspect of my life? (As I tell my students, you can say school is number one all day, but if you don’t actually study or schedule your life around it, you’re wishing, not doing.)

2. Have you exhausted your own personal resources? Meaning, we cannot do this all by ourself. So if you have reached your max on doing things by yourself and still don't have an answer, get some help (ie, a spiritual director).

3. What role does sin play in your life? Let’s get real: if you are living in sin (now is not the time to BS yourself), you have a decision to make. You either cut it out or you keep going. But you have to decide what’s more important. Thought: if you were disrespectful and uncharitable to your mother, would she continue to engage in a profound relationship with you, or would she step back and wait for you to get it together? God always pursues us; but God also knows when we don’t obey. So, if someone has moved in your relationship, I can promise you it ain't Him.

4. Be realistic. God doesn’t usually give us the answer the second we snap our fingers. He keeps you waiting for a reason, usually to draw you deeper in relationship with Him. So, keep waiting. (Or, quit waiting and do whatever the hell you want. YOLO.)

Finally, I have heard this countless times lately, and it’s starting to seem like a common theme: “God doesn’t really care what I do. He blesses it regardless.”

🙄

Bless. It. Literally. Bless it.

God DOES care what you do; free will is not an excuse to do whatever you want; nor is free will defined as “God gave me the ability to make choices and He doesn’t care what I choose." God invites us to draw into relationship with Him, just like He invites us to a primary vocation. If you choose to not RSVP “yes” to that invitation, He does care, and that will have to be worked out. “God wants me to be a priest, but I don't want to so I'll just get married and have kids and God will bless it.” (Good luck with that. Don’t say I didn't give you and wifey a heads up.)

God loves us. He loves us SO much that He created us. He LOVED us into EXISTENCE. He pursues us, constantly. And yes, if we make a choice that isn’t what He called us into, He will ultimately bless it (assuming it’s not a sin). But, the question for each of us is not “what is the most comfortable I can be so God will be pleased and bless it?”

The question, rather, is are we desiring and searching for holiness, or not, and if we are, we can be sure that we will be drawn out into the deep and must embrace being uncomfortable.

So, YES, God will tell you what He wants you to do; someway, somehow, He will tell you. And it won’t likely be a burning bush.

No, it’ll be much better. It’ll be the stillness of His gentle voice.

But you have to go back to the starting point:

Am I getting quiet? And am I really listening?

True story: God doesn’t need or want you to beg. Just show up, and ask. It’s really that simple.