Another Sign

I had a very encouraging experience yesterday. I was visiting my brother at work when one of his co-workers introduced himself. He explained that he had heard from my brother that I was in the process of becoming a priest. He wanted to know if it would be all right to ask me some questions he had about God. I was thrilled to talk with him about his questions. I let him know it was perfectly fine to ask me any questions he had and I would try my best to answer them.

We talked for fifteen twenty minutes or so about his questions, which centered mostly on prayer: the value of prayer, how to pray and expectations of prayer. My reason for recording this conversation is not that I was excited about someone seeing me as some kind of expert on God or prayer, which I most certainly am not. What was exhilarating was that I was completely comfortable with his questions and felt genuinely useful. I cold tell that this man was seeking something spiritual for himself and that I could provide the little help I had in me to his journey. I had been meditating on the prayer of St. Francis earlier in the day, and here I was being able to be a channel for God. It felt so natural for me to be having this conversation that I felt I am headed in the right direction for my life.

I have always struggled with my work. I have been successful in a number of fields, been able to earn a decent wage, but always felt I was not being myself in this work. It was all drudgery. I always felt uncomfortable in my own skin, forcing myself to perform this task or the other. I have always wanted to just be myself in my work, as the stress and politics in any job are enough to contend with, without having to play a part on top of it. But yesterday, I was not playing a part.

The answers to the man’s questions were not simple ones and I searched with him in our conversation, but he work of that searching was natural to me. I am not so egotistical that I feel I’ve helped this man find God and peace and he will be happy the rest of his life. We exchanged email addresses in hopes of continuing our discussion. What was encouraging was that I was comfortable and satisfied participating in that discussion. I am doing the right thing with my life, and that is a very good feeling.