If we associate the will of God or the voice of God as something that will come to us by magic, something written in the sky, a kind of hidden message somewhere in the universe that will be revealed to us, there is a danger that we will be caught between two opposing and dangerous concepts:

• Immobility: I’m always waiting to hear the magic voice of God or to see a written and unequivocal message about His will;
• Voluntarism: I’m committed to discover the will of God by myself, through my own resources, based only on my certitudes and convictions.

Nothing is further from the truth! God’s will is discovered as the result of a friendship story built up between me and Him, revealing ever more clearly my real inner desires.

However, some ambiguity may present itself. What we feel, and how we read what we are feeling, may not be immediately clear and it is very easy to confuse what I want with what simply pleases me.

On the other hand, one may idealize religious vocation thinking that some paths are better and more important than others (for instance, thinking that one is closer to God by being a priest or a nun). But there are no short cuts to reach God. The only way is through Jesus and this is achieved by discovering God’s will for me.
As Vasco Pinto Magalhães, sj, says: God’s will for me is “what I really want in the light of the Holy Spirit, after removing all obstacles”.

a) What I really and deeply ‘want’, not what I ‘feel like doing’, springs from the depth of a)the heart where the impulse of the Spirit moves to action.

b) More than any idea, concept or theory, it is the light of the Holy Spirit which will lead me to identify with Jesus: with His way of life and His desire that all may have life and have it to the full (John 10, 10).

c) After removing the pressure of society’s expectations and our own internal fears and prejudices the fundamental question remains: how can I respond to the impulse of the Spirit to ensure a commitment within myself to live life “to the full” and enable others to do likewise in the service of the Gospel?

Only when I open myself to God’s Grace and allow all obstacles to be removed can I discover what I really am and called to be.