18 January 2026 #diversityinunity

It’s the second Sunday in ordinary time, and the theme-of-the-week is our responsorial psalm, “Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.” The question I ask/hear most often in spiritual direction is some version of the one this psalm inspires: “What exactly is the will of the Lord… the one that I am supposed to be doing?” I mean, if the Lord says about me, “You are my servant whom I formed from the womb, through whom I show my glory,” what is the expectation here? Am I doing the right things? Because when I’m in the Adoration Chapel with specific questions in need of specific answers, it’s not like I hear Jonathon-Roumie-using-his-best-Jesus-voice whispering the answers to my Life 101 Final Exam or anything. It’s usually me just sitting there with a pencil in my hand waiting for inspiration.

Then my mind wanders to silly things like ‘Should we put little statues on those corner shelves’ or ‘What books are in that Adoration closet and does anyone really get up and look in there,’ while I am waiting for a specific choice (just one – God’s will) in the myriad of options (many – maybe not God’s will).

And that is the problem. According to Psychology Today, the average person makes 35,000 choices per day. Some of them are conscious and some unconscious, and majority of them do not necessitate the intercession of God. My commute route, breakfast entrée, and work clothes are not things the Lord necessarily cares about; I have the natural ability to choose. But caring for God’s creation, those souls without recourse to basic necessities, the distribution of my wealth to protect and provide, or expressing my feminine dignity… now those are things that build up the Kingdom of God and of which the Lord has something to say. If only we would listen… which brings us back round to my original question, ‘Am I doing the will of the Lord?’

In the final analysis, I believe in four foundational principles when it comes to doing the will of God. First, if I’m willing, God is able. If it’s His will, he’ll give me the grace to get it done. Whatever “it” is.

Second, ‘God writes straight with crooked lines.’ The Lord has a plan and a purpose for my life and even if I miss the turn or speed past the exit of my own volition or selfish ambition, He’ll get me to where I need to be… eventually.

Third, there are parameters, safety nets, inside of which I must act. All actions I choose must fall within the tradition and teachings of the Church that Jesus founded.

Last, God cannot be outdone in creativity and generosity. Which means that as long as I use the gifts I’ve been given to “model Jesus” in the world, I can’t go wrong. If I am creative and generous in my actions then they all fall under God’s purveyance. That’s where we often go wrong… we’re looking for one specific solution when there’s a range of Good, True, and Beautiful options. And that is the most amazing thing about the will of God. #diversityinunity