Vocation Primer: The Calling

God's call is the initial cause and constant center of each vocation to consecrated life—a fact often repeated and emphasized to all discerners as well those in formation.  Why, you might ask, is the calling so important and necessary to a life wholly dedicated to God?

In my next set of posts, I will attempt to formulate a response beyond what is usually offered to and accepted by devout believers, through a brief examination of selected aspects of the calling, such as its
  1) origins in Scripture,
  2) significance to one's Catholic Faith, and
  3) practical implications for those being called.

For now, here is a video of Chase Hilgenbrinck in 2008, shortly after his announcement that he was leaving professional soccer at mid-career for the priesthood.  Note how gracefully he explains his calling. (If you have trouble accessing the video below, try the URL:  http://youtu.be/0Sp-BXeYuYI)

A Novice Blogger's Plan for a Reasonably Active Webpage

It seems obvious that, as with any long-term project, a decent blog would require a bit of thought devoted to its planning and execution. However, only in the last few days did I fully realize the enormous amount of time and effort it takes to start a thoughtful and polished blog, as one day soon I hope a vocatione discernens will be.

Rather than get caught up in a show-stopping myriad of details, such as how I should take advantage of the various organizational and presentation capabilities of Blogger, I first must create content, nearly all of which exists only in my mind, save for the few scattered notes I've scribbled in four separate notebooks... no, not four laptops, but the old school kind... made of paper.

Therefore, I ask for your patience as I slowly fill  a vocatione discernens with content that, God willing, should be helpful to other discerners perusing online. Expect content here to appear initially as a series of simple blog posts, which seems to be the simplest method for a novice blogger like me to keep this site continually active and updated. At regular intervals (e.g., monthly), I also plan to reorganize content from older blog posts into structured logic typically used for web sites.

Of course, I am open to suggestions from experienced bloggers on maintaining an active yet highly navigable blog.  Thanks in advance.

(Expect my next post to appear no later than 23rd June 2014, Monday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time.)

Initial Post: A Prayer

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

O my God, I most humbly dedicate all of my work
to the praise and glory of Your name.
Lord, grant me
the perspicacity to discern Your plan for me,
the solicitude to act accordingly, and
the strength to persist in obedience to Your will.
I ask all of this through Christ, our Lord.  Amen.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.