Vocation Testimonies
God calls each of us to a particular vocation and mission in life. Yet it is not always easy to discover one’s specific vocation or to discern where that call might be best lived out.
At times it may seem that “God writes straight with crooked lines.” Yet God indeed uses every detail in our story as He gradually reveals the specifics of our calling. It is only prayerful reflection that allows us to “connect the dots” to see the bigger picture.
Below is a sampling of vocation stories that manifest the astounding ways in which God’s grace works. Links are provided so you can read the full account of these remarkable testimonies.
From Prom Queen
to Passionist Nun
Teresa Ann was quite popular in high school and was even voted in as the school’s homecoming and prom queen. Pleasure, parties, guys, and sports were her top priories, yet lasting peace and fulfillment always seemed to elude her. As a college student, she began to spend time before the Blessed Sacrament, which led to a deep hunger for God. After she worked two years with the NET retreat ministry, the Lord revealed His will for her life as a Passionist nun in Whitesville, Kentucky. Read story.
A Nun Doll, Childlike Wonder and a Spiritual Classic Were the “Seeds” of a Vocation
The vocation story of Sister Marilyn, a member of the Sister Adorers of the Precious Blood, began with winning a “sister doll” as a six-year old girl at a Sisters of Mercy fair. This special prize and a general childlike wonderment of life in things around her sparked a certain piety as she grew up. Reading Thomas Merton’s book, “Seeds of Contemplation” as a senior in high school later stirred a deep hunger for prayer and eventually led her to into the Monastery of the Precious Blood in Watertown, New York. Read story.
Waiting for a Library Card Led
to a Religious Vocation
The religious vocation of Sr. Jacinta Cormier, O.C.D., began while awaiting her first library card. Rummaging around the collection of available books, she came across “The Secret of the Rosary” by St. Louis de Montfort. She read it and started praying the Rosary. That literally changed her life. Her vocation was nourished by the Sacraments and deepened by a life of prayer. All of this eventually led her to enter the Carmelite Monastery of Mary, Mother of Grace in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Read story.
A Ten-Year Resistance to Her
Benedictine Calling
It took Sr. Mary Clare Bezner, O.S.B., about ten years to finally accept her Benedictine vocation. The first clue came when was eighteen, and then again when she got out of the Air Force. Later, while in college, she led a Bible study class for teens and even encouraged the kids to give some thought to religious life. All the while she did not want to admit she felt called. After completing college and spending a year as a missionary in Honduras, she visited a number of communities and entered the Olivetan Benedictines in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Read story.