Medicine for the Soul
I always thought I would end up in the medical field. Whenever someone would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, my answer usually ranged from a veterinarian to an anesthesiologist. In college, I decided on pharmacy and began the long and tough journey towards a biochemistry major and French minor.
At the end of my junior year, I began to prepare for the Pharmacy College Admissions Test (PCAT) and also work on interview preparation. Several of my classmates and professors asked me the same question: "Why do you want to be a pharmacist?" And yet, for some reason, I could never find the words to answer. Sure, it would have been a financially stable job, and I probably could have found a job anywhere since pharmacists are always needed. However, I had discovered that I had no passion for it. I did not see it as my calling.
It was during that time that I began to discern my vocation. I began to ask God what He was calling me to do, and I did this by praying the rosary daily through a 54-day rosary novena. The first 27 days of this novena are in petition for something, and the second 27 days are in thanksgiving of receiving that for which you asked. They say that you always receive what you ask for, but maybe not in the same way that you had hoped or expected. I certainly experienced the fruit of this beautiful prayer devotion.
During the first 27 days, I prayed and asked for clarity about my future career. Through prayer, I experienced flashbacks of previous ministerial opportunities, such as leading youth group activities, volunteering at my parish's Catechesis of the Good Shepherd classes, and even facilitating my own small group in my dorm's study room once a week. I did not know why all of these memories resurfaced through my time in prayer, but I trusted that God would provide an answer for me.
On the very last day of the first 27 days, several campus ministers from all over our diocese visited our campus for a Catholic Campus Ministry site visit. Essentially, they wanted to hear how things were going, offer suggestions for things we could be doing better, and provide any resources that we needed. They interviewed several of the students involved in our ministry, and I was interviewed by a campus minister, who happened to be a good friend of mine. When I shared with her my struggle of discerning my vocation and having the memory flashbacks during prayer, she asked me something that I will never forget.
"Have you ever heard of the Echo program?"
The rest of my interview consisted of her sharing what Echo was, what it could offer me, and how she knew several Echo apprentices who were doing incredible things for the Church. This conversation initiated the second half of my novena, as I reached out the Echo staff to ask questions about the program, worked on my application materials, and shared with my family and friends the news that I was completely changing career paths. Everything fell into place, which made it ever more clear that this is what God was calling me to do. Looking back now, the resurfaced memories were the seeds of a potential career doing what I love: sharing Jesus with others.
While I always thought I would be in a medical profession and give people medicine for the physical illnesses, I now have an even better prescription I'm writing: medicine for the soul. Ministry is beautiful, and yet each of us can truly minister to others in ANY career. For me, I get to spread Jesus and his love through conversations with teens about how to share their faith with their peers, prayers with parishioners going through a tough time, or even through interactions with strangers I encounter throughout my day. For others, it might involve spreading Jesus through a random act of kindness, an interaction with a customer or patient that shows them you truly care about them, or even supporting a coworker who might be going through a rough time.
My prescription for you is to learn about who Jesus is and to realize that he wants to have a relationship with YOU! Jesus can heal any and all of our struggles, and seeking Him can provide us with pure happiness. Sure, life is not always easy, and we will inevitably be faced with struggles and difficult situations. However, we should not dwell in our struggles, but rather look towards the One who is walking with us through them. After all, God knows what pain is like. It is one of the reasons He chose to become fully human, so that He might fully understand His people, including both their joy and suffering. Each of us must have hope and pray that our eyes will be opened to see our true calling so that we, too, can spread love to the world and care for one another more fully.
