A Catholic Convert in Ottawa

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

~ Robert Frost, “The Road Not Taken,” The Poetry of Robert Frost

Ever been in a classroom when a teacher asks a question—and no one volunteers an answer? Or at a work or committee meeting where the manager calls for someone to take on a challenge—and all those present seem suddenly absorbed by the papers in front of them?

Sometimes we’re like Moses, when the Lord asked him to lead his people out of slavery and out of Egypt (Exodus 4:12-13*): “‘Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.’ But he said, ‘Oh, my Lord, send, I pray, some other person.'”

We, like Moses, may hesitate to take on something we don’t think we’re qualified to handle.

And so it can be difficult to imagine ourselves volunteering as the prophet Isaiah did (Isaiah 6:8), even before he knew it would involve prophesying to a people who wouldn’t listen: “And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ Then I said, ‘Here am I! Send me.'”

Maybe there’s a career path we feel called to follow; a ministry we’d like to get involved in; or a social, an environmental or another type of cause we’re drawn to. But we doubt our training, our abilities and our suitability, and we hesitate. Yet every day we have a choice: stay safe in our comfort zone, or be willing to move forward, with God’s help.

If we believe God is calling us to something new—especially something we don’t feel ready for—we can talk with our priest and ask him and others to pray for and with us for discernment, guidance and faith, as we read in Hebrews 13:20-21:

Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus . . . equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in you that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

(*Scripture quotes taken from the Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition.)