Serra Club vocations essay

Prayer, engagement in parish are aids in discernment

(Editor’s note: Following is the second in a series featuring the winners of the Indianapolis Serra Club’s 2015 John D. Kelley Vocations Essay Contest.)
 

By Ryan Hollingsworth (Special to The Criterion)

I’ve gotten to that age where I have started to think about what I want my life to be like. Do I see myself as a priest, a husband, a father or a single person? It’s a daunting thing to think about, and I have come to realize that I will need God’s guidance in leading me on the correct path.

While I don’t presently see myself as a priest, I know I need to leave myself open to the possibility that this might be what God is calling me to.

The place that I see myself most and feel God is calling me to is a husband and father. My dad, uncles and grandfathers have provided me with great role models for becoming a good husband and father and in the role of supporting a family. I see myself one day sitting at Sunday Mass with my family as my family does today. I can picture myself continuing those Church traditions that my family currently honors.

To seriously discern my vocation, I need quiet, reflective time to think and listen to what God is telling me. I need to spend time in prayer. I could watch for signs around me that God is giving me that might lead me in the right direction.

I need to get as involved in my faith community as I am able. I currently serve at Mass, and I could go on to being a lector or an extraordinary minister of holy Communion. I have gone on and can participate in future mission trips. I could take advantage of Bible study opportunities, and I could get involved in peer ministry.

I need to take advantage of sacramental opportunities more often than I do. I could go to confession more frequently. One of my favorite field trips as a Seton student was to Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology. I would like to visit Saint Meinrad again. I would especially like to visit when Father Eric Augenstein is there because I find him fascinating.

All of these things will help me on my path to finding out my true vocation from God. I can’t control what God’s plan is for me, but I can provide myself with as many opportunities as possible to uncover it.
 

(Ryan and his parents, Ryan and Susan Hollingsworth, are members of St. Mary Parish in Richmond. He completed the eighth grade at Seton Catholic High School in Richmond last spring, and is the eight-grade division winner in the Indianapolis Serra Club’s 2015 John D. Kelley Vocations Essay Contest.) †