Trying to hear God's voice! Please help

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Mary_girl

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Hello everyone,
I am a 16 year old girl and I am trying to figure out what God wants of me in this life. You see, I had never really given vocation a thought, I have always known that God had a plan for each of us and I was willing to follow it. But a religious friend of mine asked me if I had ever thought about becoming Consecrated, it is almost like being a nun, but different, I had briefly but now I’m wondering if that is were God is calling me. I also should mention that like most teenagers I have a crush, like a really big crush, on this guy who is caring, Catholic, wonderful, great with kids, smart, very handsome, and just all around amazing. I have known him for about 9 years and I’ve probably had a crush on him for 8 of those 9 years!!! 😊
I always feel so happy when I’m around him and my friends say I never stop smiling when he’s around. I guess you can see my predicament… God wants us to be happy and I feel I am happy when I am with this boy but I want to make sure that I do what God wants and not what I want because it can hurt at first to do what God wants you too but in the end you will find happiness, even love hurts sometimes.
But if anyone out there could give a confused teenager :confused: some advice and keep me in your prayers then I would very much appreciate it!
God Bless you all
Mary girl
 
I would suggest that you don’t worry too much about a vocation right now. That’s not to say that you don’t learn about things and think about possibilities - but just don’t dwell so much on where you are being led at this point in your life. Especially when it comes to boys. 😉 Be friends, but don’t worry about romance. Just as with vocations, be familiar with them, but don’t start courting the idea.

You have many many years to live yet before you have to concern yourself with such things. Just continue to stay Faithful, take regular advantage of the Sacraments of Confession and Holy Communion, as well as Adoration - and before you know it, God will let you know exactly where you need to be and it will be SO obvious there will be no more wondering. 🙂

God Bless you!!

~Liza
 
Hi and welcome to CAF forums. I agree with liza 100%. 👍

You don’t need to make a decision on your vocation at 16. Just enjoy your youth in the way God meant for you.

Adoration is a great way to hear His voice. Participate in the sacraments and let God lead you. Trust me, when the right answer is presented to you, you will will know it and not be torn.

Praying for you.

BTW, what part of VT. I love it there!
 
Thanks so much you guys!
I know it may be a little early but, i don’t know. i’m deff. gonna pray about it!!!
I’m in the upper part of VT, like champlain vally area! it really is beautiful! sorry but i can’t give you any more specific than that b/c you know, the whole privacy thing and stuff!!!
anyway, thanks to you both for your answers and your prayers
Mary’s devoted little girl
 
lizaanne said:
I would suggest that you don’t worry too much about a vocation right now. That’s not to say that you don’t learn about things and think about possibilities - but just don’t dwell so much on where you are being led at this point in your life. Especially when it comes to boys. 😉 Be friends, but don’t worry about romance. Just as with vocations, be familiar with them, but don’t start courting the idea.

You have many many years to live yet before you have to concern yourself with such things. Just continue to stay Faithful, take regular advantage of the Sacraments of Confession and Holy Communion, as well as Adoration - and before you know it, God will let you know exactly where you need to be and it will be SO obvious there will be no more wondering. 🙂

God Bless you!!

~Liza
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ok. sorry i didn’t notice this sooner! i was wondering when u said not to worry about romance does that mean it would be wrong to go out with this boy?? Do you think that because i feel slightly inclined to become a Consecrated that i shouldn’t date. I never have but i also really like this boy. would it be wrong to date him? i’m not bashing you or your advice in any way. just honestly wondering…thanks!
 
You will always remember your first love-if this boy is your destiny then you will be one of the very few who live out their lives with their first love.

God calls many to the religious life, few answer the call.
Why not keep God first in your life, then everything else will fall in place.-including whether or not this is the guy for you.
 
I know I need to trust God on this one but it’s hard when God doesn’t give you straight answers when you need them. I’ll keep praying. I hope you will too.
 
Mary_girl said:
Hello everyone,
I am a 16 year old girl and I am trying to figure out what God wants of me in this life. You see, I had never really given vocation a thought, I have always known that God had a plan for each of us and I was willing to follow it. But a religious friend of mine asked me if I had ever thought about becoming Consecrated, it is almost like being a nun, but different, I had briefly but now I’m wondering if that is were God is calling me. I also should mention that like most teenagers I have a crush, like a really big crush, on this guy who is caring, Catholic, wonderful, great with kids, smart, very handsome, and just all around amazing. I have known him for about 9 years and I’ve probably had a crush on him for 8 of those 9 years!!! 😊
I always feel so happy when I’m around him and my friends say I never stop smiling when he’s around. I guess you can see my predicament… God wants us to be happy and I feel I am happy when I am with this boy but I want to make sure that I do what God wants and not what I want because it can hurt at first to do what God wants you too but in the end you will find happiness, even love hurts sometimes.
But if anyone out there could give a confused teenager :confused: some advice and keep me in your prayers then I would very much appreciate it!
God Bless you all
Mary girl
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Sounds like you’re close to a Benedictine monastery. See if you can go visit them for a few days. The only way you’ll know about consecrated life is to visit some convents or monasteries.

I also offer a yahoo group for those under 17 who are discerning vocations: groups.yahoo.com/group/young_vocations/

Blessings,
Cloisters
 
Dear Mary Girl,

Just like you, I fell in love at your age. I went out with a boy I loved very much. Then I became a convert. I was persuaded I was called to Marriage, I was fond of this boy. Nobody could put out of my mind the idea that I may be called to another way of life.
But time flied, and after my 18th birthday, I split up! It was awful, very injuring! :hypno: I was depressed for three months!

Now it’s almost a year since I left him, and I’m not in love with him any more. I’m deeply in love with God, and I regret not to having just had a friendship and not a deeper relationship.

He did call me again, eight months after, and he wanted me to begin another relationship with him. I refused, of course, because I’m thinking about religious life (I didn’t tell him!)

I advise you to let time fly, just to have a friendship with him, and not more. If he isn’t the good one, you’ll know. If he’s the good one, he won’t disappear from your sight. 😉

A priest told me that it was better to spend a few wrong years in a cloister than to begin a relationship just before everything breaks up with kids in the middle, etc.

So, take your time, don’t be afraid asking God. He’ll give you lights. Pray a lot, and live as He wants you to live. I understand very well your impatience.

God Bless You! Go ahead!​
 
Mary_girl said:
Hello everyone,
I am a 16 year old girl and I am trying to figure out what God wants of me in this life. You see, I had never really given vocation a thought, I have always known that God had a plan for each of us and I was willing to follow it. But a religious friend of mine asked me if I had ever thought about becoming Consecrated, it is almost like being a nun, but different, I had briefly but now I’m wondering if that is were God is calling me. I also should mention that like most teenagers I have a crush, like a really big crush, on this guy who is caring, Catholic, wonderful, great with kids, smart, very handsome, and just all around amazing. I have known him for about 9 years and I’ve probably had a crush on him for 8 of those 9 years!!! 😊
I always feel so happy when I’m around him and my friends say I never stop smiling when he’s around. I guess you can see my predicament… God wants us to be happy and I feel I am happy when I am with this boy but I want to make sure that I do what God wants and not what I want because it can hurt at first to do what God wants you too but in the end you will find happiness, even love hurts sometimes.
But if anyone out there could give a confused teenager :confused: some advice and keep me in your prayers then I would very much appreciate it!
God Bless you all
Mary girl
Click to expand...
I was only eight when I felt called to become a nun.:rolleyes: By almeans keep discerning get in touch with God pray to him. Get a good spiritual director she will help you discerning your call. And did you ever though about going to retreats there a big help too. Vulenter at a church near by. Build up your faith and relationship with Jesus and Mary. They will help even pray for guidence to your guardian angel that helps a lot. Hey even I have trouble hearing God. I am only 22 years old. I still am discerning my call to become a nun but like most of them will say you need work experience too. You need a full days work and to try and keep a long term job before you enter. 😉

My advice. Live in the light and a teen now because that is the best gift God could ever give. Also do not go near bad influences keep it safe and real. If a boy or a friend tells you to do something ungodly just say hey it isnt my style and just leave it at that. Be a good christian to practice being a nun wear a veil. Pray daily and try to take daily communion. Time will only tell. Oh and say the rosary too wear it all the time even your sacramentals!👍 Trust me It is better off you did. It protects you. Read the bible tooo.🙂 😃
 
ok. sorry i didn’t notice this sooner! i was wondering when u said not to worry about romance does that mean it would be wrong to go out with this boy?? Do you think that because i feel slightly inclined to become a Consecrated that i shouldn’t date. I never have but i also really like this boy. would it be wrong to date him? i’m not bashing you or your advice in any way. just honestly wondering…thanks!
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Hello Mary Girl,
It is good to hear that you are serious in your discernment.
I think it would be wrong to say that you should put off your discernment until you are older. I think the most important thing for you to do is to focus on growing in your relationship with God and learning to discern His will for you in all aspects of your life. Learn to recognise when it is the Holy Spirit speaking to you and when it is your own human desires or the influence of the devil. If you can recognise the voice of the Lord in the little things, you’ll be able to recognise His voice in the big things.
Keep praying to know what your vocation in life is, but don’t fret over it. He’s not trying to hide it from you. He’ll tell you when it’s time.
As far as dating is concerned I don’t think it would be a bad thing, in some ways it might help you to know God’s will for you. The problem comes in when we look at what the world expects in dating; what is considered acceptable. You really need to make sure that whatever relationship you get into will not be sinful, and that doesn’t just mean not going all the way. Lust itself is a grave sin, and so you need to make sure to avoid behavior that leads to lust. That’s the hard part.
God bless you and guide you!
 
The best advice I can give someone discerning a religious vocation, or any vocation for that matter, is to be holy. That’s it. Just be holy and God will take care of the rest. At the end of the day, we’re all called to holiness; we’re all called to be saints. The only question is how we can best be holy and be saints. In the words of a young man who very much wanted to enter the seminary but couldn’t because he was in a hospital dying from some disease I can’t pronounce let alone spell, “I want to get to Heaven and take as many people with me as possible.”

If you seek after holiness, today, tomorrow, and forever, you will undoubtedly find the path that God has laid out for your own holiness and thus the holiness of those around you.

Blessings.
 
I think this talk by Catholic speaker Phil Krill is very good about discernment. He talks about St. Ignatius of Loyola’s methods of discernment. The talk is called, “Discerning God’s Will for You.” Very good and easy to understand!

Here is the link. 🙂
 
MarcoPolo said:
I think this talk by Catholic speaker Phil Krill is very good about discernment. He talks about St. Ignatius of Loyola’s methods of discernment. The talk is called, “Discerning God’s Will for You.” Very good and easy to understand!

Here is the link. 🙂
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Hi MP…I dont have audio on my computer at this point, is there a link to a text I could read please?

Blessings - Barb:)
 
I would talk to a sister about this. She may have some insight and suggestions as to how to go about discerning a vocation. You are only 16 - so I think you have time to decide. I will be praying for you! God bless.🙂
 
BarbaraTherese said:
Hi MP…I dont have audio on my computer at this point, is there a link to a text I could read please?

Blessings - Barb:)
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Hi Barb. Can you burn CDs on your computer? You could make a CD out of the MP3 and play it in a CD player.

Or, I did a search, here is an article (from Australia no less 😃 ). I just skimmed it, it seems to be based on St. Ignatius’ discernment methods anyway. It’s not by Phil Krill, but maybe it will be informative for you. God bless u too. http://emoticons4u.com/happy/058.gif
 
MarcoPolo said:
Hi Barb. Can you burn CDs on your computer? You could make a CD out of the MP3 and play it in a CD player.

Or, I did a search, here is an article (from Australia no less 😃 ). I just skimmed it, it seems to be based on St. Ignatius’ discernment methods anyway. It’s not by Phil Krill, but maybe it will be informative for you. God bless u too. http://emoticons4u.com/happy/058.gif
Click to expand...
Thanks MP! I do hope to get audio and also be able to watch videos on my computer soon. Thank you for doing the Seach…well then, being from Australia the article you found just has to be good:rolleyes: …Blessings…Barb:)
 
Hello Mary Girl,

I agree with Sister Rose. You should not put off your vocation (until you’ve tried everything else first, and then “settle” for God as a last option).

The good Lord called me at the ripe old age of seven, through St. Bernadette.

Many of the boys I knew were good Christians or Christian Catholics. We were great friends - and all went out in a big group and had a blast, all through high school. :cool: I entered religious life right after, at the ripe old age of 17 years, 11 months, and 25 days (almost 18, in other words!) 😉 Guess what - I still like guys (especially big, handsome, Christian basketball players like David Robinson)…👍 but love God much, much more. Now I am a frumpy 47 year old assistant headmaster and I teach Algebra. :eek: (My high school math teacher is probably flipping over in his grave!) 😛

My advice? Read “Mary Was Her Life: The Story of a Nun” by Sister Mary Pierre, RSM. It is the best book for a young lady devoted to Mary. :nun1: It clearly shows how one can be very close to our Lady and follow her vocation faithfully, whether it be to the religious life, consecrated single life, or marriage. As John Paul II the Great reminded us, we are all called to the vocation of holiness! :harp:

Our prayers are with you,

Sister MM and the FSM of Peoria
 
Reading Saint’s lives can be really helpful! Some of them had really to wait… until they knew about their vocation.😛
 
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