Fr. Sullivan, M.J., is a priest with the Miles Jesu order. Miles Jesu is an Institute of Consecrated Life dedicated to promoting reverence to the Blessed Sacrament, devotion to Our Lady and faithfulness to the official teachings of the Church. For information on Miles Jesu and its Seminary Program, please call 1-800-654-7945 or visit their website at www.MilesJesu.com.
People are given the gifts they need to live out their calling, and God is greater than what He gives. The talents a person possesses may be a sign of what God has in store for him. But it is also true that God's design for an individual always surpasses what can be produced by human ingenuity. For example, Jesus had the power to achieve (humanly speaking) much more than He did while here on earth, but His Father asked for surrender, obedience and the giving of His own will to do the Will of the Father.
Fr. Walter Cizek joined the Jesuits as a young man. He had great physical and mental resources and spent many years preparing to serve as a priest in the U.S.S.R. From a human perspective he was perfect for such work. Soon after arriving in comunist Russia he was arrested and sentenced to prisons and labor camps for over 23 years. He led a life of deprivation, spiritual suffering and physical testing, and was not able to function as a Catholic priest. Why did this happen? To question God's designs is to doubt that He knows what is best for us. Your life is meant to give God glory — His way.
St Francis Xavier is another example of an individual with extraordinary talents which were used by God in ways that confounded men. St. Xavier's struggle to please God did not consist so much in applying his gifts in ministry, for this was natural and easy to him. His vocation was more to give up his own will in the ministry. And many times this meant letting his own plans die and accepting lesser accomplishments (humanly speaking). St Xavier fought throughout his whole life to overcome a sanguine and high-strung temperament. He was often tempted to despair; right on the verge of producing some good for others, he was often transferred to another type of apostolic work or held back by the poor judgments or mistakes of others.
St Francis Xavier's life shows that God equips an individual, but He also decides how that individual is to use his talents. So, your talents and gifts are signs pointing to your calling, but you must give God the freedom to direct those gifts. Some things necessary for a consecrated vocation are: physical and mental health and spiritual maturity. Some young people put off answering God's call because of feelings of unworthiness and inadequacy. They place too much emphasis on their own assessment of their talents and abilities.
As a young man, St. Albert the Great joined the Dominicans. At a point early in his vocation he decided to leave his vocation, since he found the life and studies too difficult. As he was climbing the walls of the priory to leave his vocation, the Blessed Virgin appeared to him. She encouraged him to be steadfast and persevere in his calling and told him that he would be given an understanding and knowledge surpassing that of all men. But to remind him that this was God's doing, she informed him that his wisdom would be taken away from him shortly before he died. He is called “the Great” because of his vast knowledge in biology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, geography, logic, metaphysics, mathematics, the Bible, and theology. But all was taken away by his loss of memory before he died.
St. John Vianney had a terribly difficult struggle in his studies for the priesthood. He was ordained for his ardent desire to help others, certainly not for his good grades. The bishop sent him to a remote corner of the diocese where it was thought he could do the least amount of harm to uneducated people. He, however, was unsurpassed in his wisdom in guiding souls and he saved many from every stratum of Society who came to him for Confession and advice.
In looking at your own vocation, remember that you should not pattern it identically after someone else's. Similarities may exist, but God calls each one uniquely, whether your vocation is in the married state, consecrated laity, the convent, or the priesthood.
