I Have Been Drawn in.....to the Priesthood!

I have been feeling a very incredibly strong spiritual movement in my life that I am to follow the life of St. Francis of Assisi in his example of prayer, poverty (as I am able in my family life), gospel study/gospel sharing, charity and rebuilding
the church.

My main pull is to rebuild the church through fostering the priesthood. I feel my life and children have lead me to this vocational work through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Church itself is also giving me and you the wise counsel to promote vocations.

The front page of my diocesan newspaper in Lincoln, NE, The Southern Catholic Register, headlined this week’s title with, “Pope Urges Entire Church to Promote Vocations, Says This Marks the Vitality of Local Community.” The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI was pictured with a caption that read, “The Holy Father, in a Feb. 10 message for the 48th World Day of Prayer for Vocations, which will be celebrated May 15, underlined the necessity for every member of the Church to promote religious vocations.”

I have come to realize that life is really oriented toward the priesthood which is an orientation toward Christ. Priests are Christ's representatives here on earth. In my life, like so many others, it was a priest that baptized me, gave me my first communion and all the following communions after that, a priest confirmed me, forgave me and still does over and over again, conferred the sacrament of marriage on my spouse and I, anointed my mother and daughter and so many others when they were sick and taught me how to live a holy life.

I have recently seen the workings of God in my life through becoming acquainted
with St. Francis of Assisi. One of his main missions in life was to rebuild the
church. The Catholic Church right now is growing in certain places and declining
in others. The times we are living in look very similar to the times St. Franics of Assisi lived in. I believe it is the devil's attack on our bishops and priests that has caused the current decline. He uses priests to attack the Church from within. But personally I have only had positive interactions and good thoughts of priests.

My mother, prior to her death, loved the priesthood. She did her part to serve
the priesthood by depending on them for her spiritual needs and then by feeding
them feasts and treating them with dignity and love. My father insisted that my siblings and I receive a Catholic education and while living in Lincoln we had the opportunity and availability of going to Catholic schools, and we did.

When my mother died, I knew she would get to heaven because she persevered in the Faith to the end. I watched her love God and be anointed by a priest on the last two days of her life.

It was a priest who taught my husband, just before we married, about the faith and then brought him gently into the faith. What a blessing it has been to share the Eucharist each week with my husband over the years!

When I became pregnant with my first child I protected her in the womb because I
knew the scourge of contraception and abortion was a sin against the fifth
commandment as taught to me by my Catholic Faith. Had I been using contraception
as the culture would have had me do, she most likely would not be here today.
It was not good timing for my husband and I to have a child, he was a full time
student. But I listened to my heart and a priest, and he essentially saved my baby’s life. I realized that her life was precious unlike so many other mothers.

After my baby was born, while I was still in the hospital, a priest brought me Communion. It was then that I truly understood how much God loved me. Through my child and a priest I found out that God loved me like I was his only child.

Then when this child became ill at the age of four it was a priest who I went to
for a blessing for her. The priest found out about her diagnosis before my
husband, through God’s divine intervention. And then throughout the 4 and ½
years of this child’s cancer treatments that same priest prayed for her just
before the consecration of the mass at every single mass he celebrated. My
daughters life, was spared in a large part because of a priest and his
persevering and continual prayers for her at the foot of the cross. He prayed
for Michaela at the foot of the cross over and over and over again. It was a
direct intervention.

There was a time when Michaela was in critical condition in the hospital and a priest anointed her. Soon after the anointing of the sick she bounced back and became better. God allowed this suffering so that someday I would understand that he was
pointing me to the importance of CATHOLIC priests!!!!

Now my three boys play priest and revere priests and love priests. This was not anything special that I did. Please understand, though I placed them in the position to be around priests at church, they took it upon themselves to dress up like priests and pretend. They drew me in and they continue to point me to the priesthood. I really believe the Holy Spirit has been using them for this purpose.

St. Francis, during his life on earth, had a mission to rebuild the church.
Through his intercession and guidance I now go forward in trying to also do my
part to rebuild the church. It is through priests, those men who act in
persona Christi, that the church will be strong. I must pray for them and act
for them. And I will!!

Please comment and share your testimony on how priests have affected your life. And then join me in praying for priests and promoting them for you will be rewarded in heaven!