Pray for Our Priests - Begin a Vianney Cenacle
Called to Love
Photo By: Flickr/Damian Gadal
God calls us all to answer to the personal call to holiness in our lives by loving and trusting Him with all of our hearts. Once we recognize that we all have a call to follow Him we ask ourselves: What vocation is God calling me to in the Catholic Church; priesthood, consecrated life, single life, or married life? What can I do to be able to discern God’s voice in this noisy world? What is the plan that God has for me for my life? How can I offer my gifts and talents to the Lord in a way that is fulfilling God’s will?
We spend a large part of our lives grappling with trying to decipher the plan that God has for us, and at one time or another these questions come to our minds. The only way for us to be able to discern His call and figure out God’s plan for us is to be able to listen with the quiet of our own hearts. We are able to recognize and respond to God’s call by strengthening our relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ and it is through this relationship that we can be open to God’s divine will. By keeping Jesus at the center of our lives we form an intimate relationship that leads us to have the desire to not only consider God’s calling to us, but to also respond to that call.
The Lord wants us to be able to receive His blueprint for our life, and it is by spending time with Jesus that we can receive this gift. The ways that we can grow in intimacy and have an encounter with Christ is by participating frequently in the sacraments of Communion and Penance, reading scripture, daily prayer, Eucharistic Adoration, private devotions, and the desire to have a deep and meaningful relationship with the Son of God.
Love Calls the Heart
The stirring of desire
ignites a burning flame.
A love calls the heart
with silent words her soul engraved.
The soft echo gently whispers
in the solemn, stillness of the night.
A divine nudge from within;
the beautiful gift of her life.
The invitation of divine romance
sparks a crimson fire.
Wrapped in a sacred embrace;
the arms of her Beloved.
A white shroud of snow conceals
the dusty surface.
With the sweet breath of spring,
the buzzing bees hum softly.
A little violet emerges
into the shimmering, sunlight
as the golden glow illuminates
the rose-colored glass.
This excerpt is from the book Called to Love - A Listening Heart A Book of Catholic Poetry by Christina M. Sorrentino, originally published by Blurb Publications, 2018. This book can be purchased Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Blurb.
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About the Author
Christina M. Sorrentino is the Editor-in-Chief at Ignitum Today, and a regular contributor to Catholic Exchange. She is also a co-leader for a Maria Goretti Network Chapter, the facilitator of a Vianney Cenacle affiliated with the Foundation of Prayer for Priests, and teaches theology at a local Catholic high school. Ms. Sorrentino has contributed to various publications, including Missio Dei and Homiletic and Pastoral Review. She is a published author, and co-authored her most recent book The Eucharistic Revival Project by Missio Dei. She is a Roman Catholic who resides in Staten Island, New York with a Masters in Education from the College of Staten Island, a graduate certificate in contemporary apologetics from Catholic Distance University, and a Catechist Certificate from the Archdiocese of New York. You can visit her website Called to Love – A Listening Heart, where she writes about the musings of a millennial Catholic called to love or follow her on Twitter.
