In June I helped out with a retreat. The virtual retreat gathered young adults over the course of a week to reflect on vocation and their faith journey. I walked with one of the small groups as a mentor. These twenty-somethings found themselves struggling with the complexity of vocation. Despite ample theology and pastoral work on the subject, for most it still remains the “are you going to get married and have kids or become a priest/sister” question.
With a few more years of experience and hopefully a bit of the Spirit’s guidance, I invited them to think more broadly. I shared with them what I consider my vocation – to meet people where they are at and walk with them in their faith journey. Thus, when my job changes or my relationships shift, I have this essence to return to that allows me to remember who I am and what God is inviting me to constantly grow into. Vocation blooms in the space where your passion and the world’s needs meet, as my spiritual director reminded me. Vocations, like our faith, permeate all aspects of life
Today we celebrate the feast of St. Teresa of Avila. A Doctor of the Church, St. Teresa experienced evolution in her spiritual life. Her vocation cannot be reduced simply to her discerning into a religious order. Her vocation, her relationship with God, and the community in which she lived grew and deepened. She encountered and reencountered God, kindled her passion, and met the needs of the world, not only in her small corner of the world in that particular moment, but for ages to come.
The photo with this post is one I took on pilgrimage in Avila. I love how it portrays both a stillness and movement. That tension is one that denotes a healthy balance. A stillness rooted in relationship with God and an anchor to our identity in the world. A movement toward mission, toward fulfilling our vocation, to live that passion in the world that manifest’s Christ’s presence in the world.
Today I embark on this new venture of my vocation, this website. I invite you to spend some time in honor of St. Teresa’s complex journey to reflect on your own. Where do your passions intersect with the world’s needs? Where does God speak to you in your joy?