In the hit song from 1990, “Story of My Life,” Social Distortion’s lead singer Mike Ness sings, “Life goes by so fast/You only want to do what you think is right/Close your eyes and then it’s past/Story of my life.” I can honestly say these words describe how life has been since I have been in the seminary. When I entered five years ago, ordination looked so far away. I can’t believe that I am now finishing my pastoral year and I am one year away from my ordination to the transitional deaconate. I have come a long way since when I first entered the seminary, and everything I have experienced in it has made me a better man and a better disciple.
Just like many men who enter the seminary, the idea of ordination feels like a million years away when you first enter. I remember telling myself that I would take it one day at a time. Many men aren’t sure about their vocation when they enter the seminary; they just know God wants them to be there for some reason. For some men, their vocation will grow and it will be confirmed more and more with each passing year. Other men will find that the Lord is calling them to another vocation. Either path, whether continuing or discerning another call, requires prayer and faith.
As Mike Ness tells us, life flies by. Many of the priests in our diocese can also confirm this and add that each passing year it goes faster and faster. If you are on the fence about whether or not the seminary is in your future, what is keeping you from making a decision? At some point in life, we all have to make a decision on whether to marry, stay single, or enter the seminary. We can’t stay on the fence forever, at some point you have to try. I was on the fence for about a year before I joined. As I mentioned, I wasn’t 100% sure of my vocation, but then nobody is. All of our major life decisions require faith that God will supply us with what we needed for the journey. I only had a feeling God was calling me there when I finally tried it. This has been a choice that I will always be thankful for.
Now, I am not saying it is an easy choice. Even though I have been a seminarian for five years, that trust and faith is not something that comes easy. It is hard to do. However, if we do not have that trust or faith to at least try, then we will never know. I have had many obstacles on my road while in the seminary, often times they were myself. Thankfully through the prayers of my friends and family, each time I had faith and trusted in the Lord to help me through what I thought were difficult times, I found that I not only succeeded, but I enjoyed the experience it as well. It is not all easy, but it is all good.
It is easy to get wrapped up in things, and before you know it, years have passed. For some of us it is ordination time, for others it might be time to get married. When we look back on our lives, we need to ask ourselves some questions. Did we truly pray about the decisions we made? Did we take that time to be alone with God and to listen to what He might have been speaking to us in our hearts? Did we do what WE wanted to do, or did we do what GOD wanted us to do?
Father Adam Cichoski
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