I believe as human beings we all have a call, a call to be a particular type of person. From my early existence, born into a particular family at a particular time in a particular community, I was very familiar with the relationship between God and His children being structured around a call. Discerning my vocation is a matter of reflecting on God’s call and pondering on how to answer that call. It makes me reflect on how to engage in the community in which I live and how to connect my vocation discernment to my responsibility to work among the poor and the oppressed.
Being brought up in a Catholic family and being actively involved in the church and listening to the stories of lay missionaries helped me to search and reflect on what God has called me to share with His people. Responding to the call to be a lay missionary led me to examine my life, to discover my gifts and to discern God’s true love for me.
The Columban Joint Sending Orientation Programme (JSOP) was a challenge for me especially after my mom’s death. I felt a sense of restlessness, denial, agitation and confusion. It was like being in the middle of a wild, rushing river with nothing to hold on to. However, I believed I was put into this world for a divine purpose, to learn from my pain and share these lessons with others. Participating in some of the programs like Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) helped me confront the reality of death. During this orientation program, I have learnt that life is meant to be lived in the moment, good is meant to be done whenever possible and love is meant to be given always.
The Columbans are a society of missionaries, including priests and lay people, who minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing to the universal love of God.