Discerning a Vocation: Big Questions of Young Adults

At the end of each conference we ask our young adult participants to answer to this question: "Which new questions did the conference raise for you?" Our participants have replied many times that they discovered how positive it was for them to ask the right questions in their discernment process and that being able to express what they needed was a step forward in their journey. We would like to share the wisdom of our participants with our readers and have summarized the "Big Questions" in six categories.

1. Questions about answering God’s call:

• Am I going to be able to answer God's call with all my heart?
• How willing am I to trust that there is a plan, either manifested now or in the future, for me and my ministry…and God's ministry for which I am a worker?
• It’s more like peeling back an onion-different layers are revealed at different times. The questions are: “What’s next?” or “What after that?”
• What am I waiting for?
• Am I listening to God’s call?
• What is God saying to me in this calling?
• How can I be a mother to God’s children?
• Do I care enough to be generous and respond fully to the call?
• What is the right timing? Should I be patient with God’s plan or act on my clarities?
• If I am doing something that is good, necessary and I see God, but I’m not necessarily joyful, can that still be a calling?
• What’s next in my life? I’m ready for it!
• How long will it be until I figure out what God’s plan is? How can I know I’m on the right track?
• Am I giving it my all? What is holding me back?
• Would I answer the call to Religious Life if God asks me to?
  

2. Personal questions about gifts, talents and the relationship with God:

• What skills do I bring to ministry? What about myself needs more work?
• I have questions about authenticity and motives behind my vocational choices; I realized that I need further exploration and discernment.
• How can I nurture my gifts? How do I continue to discover my gifts? How can I be a valuable contributor to the Church? Where do I start? How do I stay motivated?
• How strong is my relationship with God?
• What ways should I be nurturing my gifts?
• What concrete ways am I integrating my sexuality into my personality in a healthy way?
• Is it better to date or stay single in the discernment process?
• How can I keep learning about prayer?
• What are my greatest joys and how can I express them in ministry? What are my talents and how can I nurture them to be a better minister in my daily life?
• I am unsure about my sexual maturity/comfort. How does one find intimacy with opposite sex and nurture it well?
• What are my clarities and how am I going to act on them?
• Will I be able to sustain this closeness I feel with God in a secular environment?
• How can I use my gifts to serve others?
• How do I continue to grow in discernment? What gifts has God given me to use for others?
  

3. Questions about the Church in general:

• Women are supposedly seen as equals (one baptism), but they can't be priests. At times I've felt the calling to be a priest
• I have question on my beliefs in the Church.
• I have a lot of questions about the direction the Church is heading and where do I fit in.
• Can I discern with still having reservations about doctrine?
• Why is the Church so divided? How is there such liberal Catholics? … I just didn't realize there was such difference within the Church and this is difficult for me.
  

4. Questions about finding the right place in ministry:

• Is the religious life really for me? What do I do with this call?
• What type of ministry is right for me?
• What are my gifts and how do they fit into ministry?
• In what ways can I live out my call?
• How is God calling to ministry for the marginalized and the oppressed?
• How do I serve in one way versus feeling like I need to be superwoman?
• Am I being called to be a sister? Than what about my relationship with my family and boyfriend?
• I want to learn more about ministry sites like Christ the King and about diversity within the Church.
• I feel called to service, but now in what capacity?
• How am I called to serve vs. where? My strengths and weaknesses became more clear and vivid. My deepest desires seemed to surface and grab my attention.
• Do I want to be married? Am I called to be married? Do I still want to be a religious?
  

5. Practical questions about a career in ministry:

• How do I go about finding the right religious order?
• Am I called to full-time ministry or on a volunteer basis?
• I’m more curious about the different religious orders, and will be more open to exploring them. I’m also going to really investigate various M.Div. programs and ministries.
• What steps do I need to take to continue my discernment?
• Should I attend grad school?
• Where are good places to find ministry jobs?
• When can I start, where do I start?
• What steps must I take to reach my goals?
• Now what? I know what I want to do, but I don’t know the logistics
• How are those lacking college degrees called to serve in ministry?
• What are some programs and practical steps I can take to continue my education and formation?
• What types of scholarships are available to those that want to pursue ministry?
• What kind of lay ecclesial ministry works well in conjunction with having a family?
• If it's best to go through some sort of theological training then will those in ministry only be those of resources?
• How will I continue my education so I can effectively serve the Church?
  

6. Questions about community, support from others and guidance:

• Why have I stayed connected with my community?
• How many awesome people like this are out there?
• Who will and won’t support me?
• Who can I trust with my spiritual journey?
• How can I meet others who are like minded for ministry?
• Who will I ask to be my Spiritual Director? How can I build my relationships up in a Christian way? What does it mean to be Catholic?
  

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