https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/011424.cfm January 14th readings
Some of the more interesting people I’ve met in my life are the ones who have made midlife career changes. The lady who cuts my hair told me that she originally was an accountant and was miserable at work. She hated the pressure and the hours. She always loved cutting hair. In fact, she fixed her own hair and everyone in her wedding party. With encouragement from her husband and family she went to cosmetology school. It wasn’t easy. Her first couple of jobs out of school were demanding and not a great fit, but she persisted and eventually was able to open her own salon. She is far happier now than she was as an accountant.
A friend of mine decided to go to medical school in her 40’s while raising 4 boys. Another friend started a cake business while being a graphic designer. All listened to the life God was calling them to live and took risks, overcame obstacles, and forged their own path.
Andrew, initially a disciple of John the Baptist, follows Jesus after John sees Jesus and says, “Behold the Lamb of God”. There is no mention of Andrew weighing his options, considering the financial implications, or thinking about what others will say. He just takes off after Jesus. Samuel, like most of us, is hearing God, but doesn’t realize who is calling. Samuel needs help from Eli to help him understand what is happening and what to do.
Most of us won’t have such a strong calling like Andrew or Samuel, but if we listen, we are all called in many ways to follow Christ. Sometimes it’s in small ways like being kind to the unpleasant neighbor next door, or not spreading the best gossip you’ve heard in a while. Sometimes we hear God calling us in big ways like ending a relationship or moving to a new city.
As Mary Oliver, the poet, wrote, “Oh feed me this day, Holy Spirit, with the fragrance of the fields and the freshness of the oceans which you have made, and help me to hear and to hold in all dearness those exacting and wonderful words of our Lord Christ Jesus, saying: Follow me.”
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