Does this happen to others too?

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Rachel_1

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Please forgive me, I am a newbie and I don’t know if this happens to others as it does to me. The reason I ask is that at my ‘home’ parish, it seems that some people just go because, well, it’s the thing to do, I don’t know if they actually take things seriously or not, and I don’t really want to judge them so I just pray for them. But when I’ve asked some at my ‘home’ parish about what I’m going through, they kind of look at me like I’m crazy or something, so because of this I assume that this doesn’t happen to many people, or maybe it’s just the certain people I ask ~shrug~
To get to my question I think an understanding of my background (how I came to the Church) is needed. I’ll make it short though, although if you want the full version I believe I’ve posted it before also. I came to the Church in a very supernatural type way. It started with my heart attack and a near death type experience and then progressed to me praying daily for God to show me what to believe. Other supernatural type things have happened to me as well concerning my investigation into my dad’s murder, and finally it led to me feeling very strongly (with no Catholic training or upbringing) to feel that I needed to pray the Rosary. I taught myself how and prayed it daily for like a week and a half and dreams started where I was being told that “I’m supposed to be Catholic”. I ended up going to my local parish where I met my sponsor (who wasn’t supposed to be there and said that it was a supernatural event that got her there at that time) and ended up joining RCIA. During the time in RCIA (which we thought would take years to get me into the Church because of annulment issues) I was brought into the Church really fast, the tribunal suddenly allowed the annulments to go through in a matter of a week which shocked everyone (it was lack of form because my dad made sure I was Baptized Catholic as a baby). Ok, so you can see I’ve had some things out of the ordinary happen, and I am now in the Church fully.
So, here’s what’s happening now to me. I’m being directed to do certain things with no real knowledge of what they are, or how to do them, I question myself when this happens as just somehow coming from me, then I’ll get others telling me the same thing kind of as like a sign to me that it’s really direction from God.
Example- months ago I felt REALLY drawn to the brown scapular. I was never taught about this or anything. I actually fought the idea of wearing one for months. I stalled and stalled, but kept feeling that I should be wearing one, not so much because of the promises made but because of the devotion with it and consecrating myself. So I stalled and stalled, and then I went to another parish in another state (California) and the priest there kept talking about it and I felt that HUGE tug in my heart again, so I determined then that maybe it’s not just me but still stalled. Then a few weeks ago another priest from another parish, in another state said that I should be wearing one… ok, I got the hint, I bought some, but still stalled. Then last Friday I went to another parish that had the devotion to the Two Hearts (yet another thing I kept being tugged at to do so I finally went), and part of the devotion is going to Confession… so I went to Confession with a priest I’ve never talked to before and was confessing an argument with my husband and out of the blue he asks me if I’m wearing my brown scapular! So the next day, I got enrolled.
Things like this happen to me ALL THE TIME. It’s almost always with some devotion to either Jesus or Mary. When I tell people about stuff like this happening, they look at me like I’m crazy, but I know I’m not, I know it’s God directing me.
So does this kind of stuff happen to anyone else?
 
Yes, but God is not “Jerky”; dropping hints and signals all over the place for us to do or not do things. Don’t feel like you need to read into everything that happens for a “sign”. Everything that happens is His will, but that doesn’t mean there’s a sign to change something you’re doing/not doing.

Don’t focus too much on signs and feelings. Focus on rectifying your will and conversing with God. “Father, you know I’ve been bugging you in prayer for weeks about this issue…I’ve used the intelligence you’ve given me…and the friends that you’ve given me, and have concluded that I will do xyz…I don’t want to displease you in anyway, my will is Your will.”
 
I feel called to do certain things as well. A good sign that God is working in one’s life is that you feel drawn to places or to do things you didn’t plan to, and doing so brings you closer to God. Just make sure not to rely too much on feelings, because they can often turn out wrong and you can be left confused and disheartened. I think the Pope said that the best way to discern God’s voice in your life is to spend time in Eucharistic adoration, because that’s where he makes his physical presence known to us.
 
Dear Rachel,

It sounds like you’re hearing well :). Keep your ears open!

I do recommend looking for a spiritual director, though. God speaks through signs at times, like you’ve experienced, but we also can misinterpret the signs or even receive signs from the enemy. It’s important to have a spiritual director to obey and seek wisdom from, for God can use him or her to slice through the chaff and give you guidance. One must never trust one’s own wisdom or private revelations above one’s spiritual director. Take your spiritual director as an anchor, holding your vessel in the secure harbor of God’s Kingdom. Find an experienced, orthodox Catholic and then stick with what he tells you. Even if he advises you to pay no attention to real signs God is giving you, you should then listen to him, for God will never judge you for following a poor spiritual director. All the saints put the guidance of their spiritual director above their personal communications from God, sometimes even ignoring God deliberately because their spiritual director told them to. God honored them for doing this, because He created the structure of authority spiritual directors are part of, and He prefers that we take the humble path of obedience to them above the self-glorifying path of relying on our own judgment first.
 
My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints.
**Proverbs 2: 1-8 **

It sounds like you are searching for wisdom as for hid treasures. God speaks to me in many many ways all the time. Sometimes with signs like what you said. Keep on searching 4 Ever!! God is Sooo Cool!
 
Some things certainly seem to ‘happen for the best’ - I know I’ve experienced that in my life. Unexpected generosity from an employer that enabled me to get close to God, things that seemed incredibly difficult to bear turning out to prepare me for something very important, but unconnected, that happened very quickly afterwards, that sort of thing.

I’m not really the sort of person to whom God seems to impart immediate revelatory experiences though: the understanding seems to come some time after the fact and with it the thanks to God for the opportunities to learn something new about myself.

I would only counsel not to force interpretation out of everything that happens to you. Some things just are coincidences. Some things aren’t connected to anything else at all. What they can do though is prompt our minds to make the connections towards a new understanding. It sounds to me like you’re very good at seeing the learning possibilities and the patterns within our lives. With your life moving so demonstrably towards God it would certainly not be surprising that the things that happen to you fit into that context well.

I would say that God isn’t necessarily altering the world around you to send you messages, rather that you’re picking up rather well on His hopes and dreams for you… Don’t get obsessed with seeking out ‘signs’… simply trust in and pray to God that you are making the right choices.
 
I remember reading once (although I don’t remember where) that we shouldn’t seek out signs… but what if we simply see signs without seeking them?
 
Yes it has sorta. At the beginning of my renewal, I was on fire, and would get certain books, say like Transformation in Christ, by D. Von Hildebrand. I couldn’t read it at the time. I had to grow first. Now I can read it no problem, but before I absolutely could not. I see it as God’s timing. It was too much for me at the early stage I was at, and He knew it.
I have other examples along the same line, but I’ll spare you. His will and His time.
 
Thanks for all your replies. I guess first of all I want to make clear that I’m not searching out signs. I’m pretty content just praying and stuff. I actually try to avoid signs 😉
As far as a spiritual director, yea. I think I need one too, I’ve actually thought that for months but I have no idea who or how to go about finding one. I’ve actually prayed that God would send me the right person 🙂
 
Ask your parish priest what solidly orthodox religious orders are in the area. If he gives you some good recommendations, ask them if they could offer you spiritual direction. You also could check if any of the orders on this website are in your area. All these orders are solidly orthodox and are very good. It was recommended to me by an excellent Norbertine priest, my own spiritual director, as I investigated the religious life. Looking for a spiritual director among these places would be very useful, I expect.
 
Rachel, this has happened to me as well 🙂 I felt drawn to Catholicism, the Divine Mercy chaplet, the brown scapular, and the Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary, without really knowing what those things are at first. I’ve found that now though, God leads me in other ways.

I definitely think that can be from God 🙂

I agree about getting a spiritual director for the future… and it seems that God is taking care of you and leading you in the right path 🙂

God bless!
 
These kinds of things happen to me all the time too. I never seek them out but I do try always to carefully discern all of the major decisions in my life, and God often sends signs to indicate the correct way to go. It happens in the reverse, too. Sometimes the signs point me away from something. I was discerning for a time whether or not to join the Secular Franciscan Order, and impediments kept popping up and blocking my every opportunity. Then, suddenly and out of nowhere, came an opportunity to take a retreat at a Benedictine monastery and it became immediately clear during my stay there that God was calling me to become a Benedictine oblate instead.
 
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