This is Day 3 of National Vocations Awareness Week and today we hear the beautiful story of a young woman whose openness to the call of God has led her to discern entry into both the Catholic Church and religious life.
28-year-old Harmony Bird is a native of Fort Collins in Colorado. She is currently discerning a vocation with the Servants of God’s Love in Ann Arbor. Here’s how Harmony describes her ongoing “epic, love story scavenger hunt” as she attempts to find and follow each divinely inspired clue along the path of life. Harmony writes:
“This is a miraculous love story of how God called me out from Colorado to discern my vocation with the Servants of God’s Love in Ann Arbor, Michigan - and, through that, to join the Catholic Church! Just know that what I have room to share here only scratches the surface of all the wonderful ways God has worked in my life, even in just the past eleven months.”
“In January of this year I heard about The Servants of God’s Love. Two aspects about their community caught my attention: they are charismatic and they have a fourth vow to the common life. But this is not what got me packing my bags. It was actually Laurel’s pastoral advice (she’s my spiritual mother) that encouraged me to move to Michigan and discern my call further with the Sisters. She saw them as an answer to the prayer that I would have a way of life to support my vocation to live single for the Lord. The church that she and I are members of is charismatic, has roots in Evangelical Orthodoxy, and lives out Christian covenant community. When Laurel shared this with me I felt like I had received the biggest gift of my life! God wanted me like this?! But while the invitation to pursue life with the Sisters was an answer to my heart’s deepest dream, I didn’t know how to think about becoming Catholic. So, I asked Jesus. His immediate answer was, “I have you on an epic, love story scavenger hunt and you’ve just found the next clue.” Well, He knows just what to say! How could I resist that?”
“I immediately reached out to the Sisters by email. The subject line read “Request to begin formation.” This felt bold and unprecedented, but I was excited! Just a few days later I joined the Sisters for a mini retreat hosted over zoom by their vocation team, Sr. Lisa and Sr. Rachel. The Sisters were filled with joy and I experienced the Spirit’s presence in our time together. So began a wonderful string of confirmation after confirmation. This was God’s plan for me! And He was dramatically leading me through our love story.”
“Clearly, the first step would be to discern the Catholic Church so Sr. Rachel gave me the contact number for the director of evangelization at their parish, Christ the King. I talked to Jessica about the process of joining the Church and she explained the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults or RCIA to me. In her wisdom, she suggested I come for a preliminary visit to check things out before making the big move. Both her and her roommate Allison, who would later become my catechist, hosted me for an extended weekend in February. As I flew over Lake Michigan towards Detroit I heard the Lord say, “Welcome home.” I had never moved more than 15 minutes away from my childhood home. Although I had experience with travelling I had never gone somewhere with the intention of moving there. This was quite a new experience and God graced me with gift after gift. He knows exactly how to love me.”
“On March 23rd, after a myriad of prophetic words and symbols (including that I left Colorado on the first full day of spring, thus beginning a “spiritual springtime”), I moved into Emmanuel House. This house is a home for the elderly run by The Servants of God’s Love in Ann Arbor. An opening to be a live-in caregiver was providentially provided by my Heavenly Father who knew it was (and still is) the perfect place for me to live. Serving three elderly women gives me the opportunity to order my life around others and reminds me in a practical way to keep the first things first.”
“Jesus is drawing my heart closer to His through RCIA (I am more than half way through now!). The Blessed Mother has shown me her love time and time again and is knitting a sweet bond between us. The Father has given me grace to wrestle with questions and courage to give myself to the struggle that increases faith. The Holy Spirit is pouring out His love in me and training me to live in a deeper awareness of His presence. No eye has seen nor ear heard what God has prepared for those who love Him so I will wholeheartedly desire Him and from within His temple gaze on His beauty all the days of my life (1 Cor. 2:9; Ps. 27:4). Come, Holy Spirit!”
• Do you feel God may also be calling you to religious life? Contact Dawn Hausmann, Director of Consecrated Vocations at the Diocese of Lansing on 517-342-2506 or dhausmann@dioceseoflansing.org