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The Calling
July 7, 2025
“How did the rose ever open its heart and give to the world all its beauty? It felt the encouragement of light against its being. Otherwise, we all remain too frightened."
~ Daniel Ladinsky, inspired by Hafiz
I’d like to share with you the story of how I came to be here today sharing this story with you.
It was a cold day in February of 2004, on a back road in northwestern Pennsylvania, amid beautiful snow-covered surroundings that were vaguely familiar to me. I was traveling with my mother to my great aunt’s funeral. And as I sat in the passenger’s seat, out of the blue I heard the Voice inside my head say, You’re going to be a minister, and you’re going to go to Fellowships.* Those exact words, and I heard them the way that many of us think Noah must have heard God tell him to build an ark. Upon hearing the Voice, my eyes welled up with tears, I couldn’t say anything - I couldn’t even look at my mother. It was an intense, personal moment in which time seemed to stand still. Finally I remembered to breathe, and somehow I was able to regain some semblance of composure by the time we arrived at the funeral. * Referring to Fellowships of the Spirit, a Spiritualist institution just outside the gates of Lily Dale, New York, that offers a ministerial program called The School for Healing and Prophecy.
It was a cold day in February of 2004, on a back road in northwestern Pennsylvania, amid beautiful snow-covered surroundings that were vaguely familiar to me. I was traveling with my mother to my great aunt’s funeral. And as I sat in the passenger’s seat, out of the blue I heard the Voice inside my head say, You’re going to be a minister, and you’re going to go to Fellowships.* Those exact words, and I heard them the way that many of us think Noah must have heard God tell him to build an ark. Upon hearing the Voice, my eyes welled up with tears, I couldn’t say anything - I couldn’t even look at my mother. It was an intense, personal moment in which time seemed to stand still. Finally I remembered to breathe, and somehow I was able to regain some semblance of composure by the time we arrived at the funeral. * Referring to Fellowships of the Spirit, a Spiritualist institution just outside the gates of Lily Dale, New York, that offers a ministerial program called The School for Healing and Prophecy.
A retreat would be good
But you see, the story really began before that. It really began the year before, in May of 2003. I was journaling my way through a book by Caroline Myss titled Sacred Contracts. I got to a particular prompt and I heard the Voice say, this time very softly, A retreat would be good.
Immediately I thought of some classes that had been recommended to me earlier that year and found the catalog I had previously set aside. Class began on Friday; this was Thursday, and I thought to myself, "If I can get the details worked out, then I’ll go."
There was room in the class, my family members were able to adjust their schedules, and I could stay with my aunt. So I went.
The truth resonates
But it really all began before that, even. It began with a booklet. I had stopped at my mother’s house, and as I perused her bookshelves for something interesting to read, I saw these mini-books that stated on the cover, “Channeled by the Archangel Gabriel.” The skeptic in me thought, "Yeah, right!"
Yet I took them home anyway, started to read one of them, and could not put it down. The Voice didn’t speak to me that time. This time I felt a sense of surety that the booklet held spiritual truths my soul craved, and I was filled with a hunger for more. You know what I mean: I felt the truth resonating within me.
When I showed the booklet to a family member, he saw the cover and gave me the look. I said, “I know, I know. It’s ridiculous, but I don’t even care whether or not it was channeled by the archangel Gabriel. The information in it explains things in a way that makes sense to me, and there is truth in those pages!”
Variations of the Voice
And of course, the story really began before that incident, even. It began innocently enough with some meditation and healing circles that I had begun attending years before, with an even fainter version of the Voice, so faint that I couldn’t distinguish it from my other thoughts.
Over the years, I have come to recognize the Voice in its multitudinous variations. I listened to the Voice in May of 2006, during a meditation when it gave me the name for my professional practice. I listened a few months after that, when it inspired me to call a friend about a business question - a conversation that resulted in the two of us signing a contract two days later to share an office.
What is this Voice of which I speak? It is the Voice for God, Goddess, Infinite Spirit, Source, Creator, Great Mystery, or any other names for the God of your Understanding.
A Course in Miracles
I’d like to share with you some things about the Voice that I've learned from my studies of A Course in Miracles. This first quotation is from the Text, Chapter 5, Section II, titled The Voice for God:
“The Holy Spirit is the spirit of joy. He is the Call to return… His is the Voice that calls back to where you were before and will be again… The Holy Spirit speaks for God… The Holy Spirit is the call to awaken and be glad… Everyone will answer the Call of the Holy Spirit.”
And another quotation - this one is from the Workbook, Lesson 154, titled I am Among the Ministers of God:
“Whatever your appointed role may be, it was selected by the Voice for God, Whose function is to speak for you as well. Seeing your strengths exactly as they are, and equally aware of where they can be best applied, for what, to whom and when, He chooses and accepts your part for you… And that one Voice appoints your function, and relays it to you, giving you the strength to understand it, do what it entails, and to succeed in everything you do that is related to it.”
You might think of the Voice for God as a calling to serve humanity - a ministry, if you will. There is a ministry of healing, of music, of writing, of teaching, of parenting, of creating things of beauty, of hospitality, of many other things, and my personal favorite: the Ministry of Magic (yes, I do believe my ministry is filled with all kinds of magical experiences and many miracles).
Some things of which you can be sure
There are a few things of which you can be sure about your calling. First, it is the Voice for God that draws you to your path of service. Second, everyone has a divine purpose and you will be called to it at some point in your spiritual evolution. And finally, regardless of the form your ministry takes, it will be uniquely suited to your talents, strengths, and heartfelt desires.
Furthermore, not only are our ministries divinely inspired, they are divinely cultivated. We receive a lot of help and guidance from the universe itself and from our loved ones who are in spirit, including said Voice or Holy Spirit.
The universe responded with love after that cold day in February 2004. At first I was so scared I couldn’t say anything to anyone about it, so I began by saying things out loud to myself after my meditations. Each time I said it I felt better.
Then I said it during a development circle I attended. The other participants jumped with joy.
Then I got up the courage to tell my family. They were surprisingly supportive.
Then the money came. It arrived in the form of an unexpected tax refund on the same day that the seminary pamphlet arrived, and the amount was nearly the exact amount required for the first year of seminary training.
The call to trust
Our biggest job in responding to the call, is to trust. I'd like to share another quotation from A Course in Miracles - this time from the Manual, Chapter 4, titled What are the Characteristics of God’s Teachers?
“Trust. This is the foundation on which their ability to fulfill their function rests… The teachers of God have trust in the world, because they have learned it is governed by a Power that is in them but not of them.”
I remember a time during my seminary training when someone asked me, “Are you going to hang out a shingle like your mother?” (my mother was serving as a Registered Medium in Lily Dale at the time).
My response was an emphatic “No!” At that time I did not want to be a minister, nor a healer, nor a professional medium. The scary truth was, I didn’t know what I was going to do after seminary. I simply knew I was supposed to be there - I had begun to trust the Voice.
Everyday Meditation and Standing Date with Self
Trust naturally grows as people get to know one another by spending time together and conversing. I have found two tools helpful in building trust with the Voice: I call them "Standing Date with Self" and "Everyday Meditation."
Standing Date with Self. Once a week, for a minimum of an hour, spend quality time by yourself.
You may think of this as spending time with God in whatever nomenclature is most comfortable to you: the spark of the divine within, the life force energy of the universe, the Holy Spirit, the Voice, your spirit, your soul, your higher self, your inner child, your inner artist, or your wise inner self.
The date is intended to inspire you, and how you spend the time may vary week by week. Some examples: walking in nature, practicing yoga or tai chi, wandering through a museum exhibit, taking a relaxing or luxurious bath, doing energy work, creating something, listening to exhilarating music, journaling, meditating, praying.
The day and time may vary week by week: one hour this Thursday at 7 am, two hours next Tuesday at 4 pm, all day the following Saturday; or you may prefer to schedule for an hour every Friday at noon. And keep your dates: don't cancel on yourself or allow other activities, invitations, or obligations to take priority unless they are a true emergency or similarly urgent.
Everyday Meditation. As soon as you wake up each morning or after your regular meditation time, ask yourself, "What is important for me to know or do today?"
Notice whatever you notice when you ask, and especially pay attention to the first thing that comes to my awareness. I always receive a response and I always take note of it. It may be a feeling, an inner knowing, something heard inside the head, something seen in the mind's eye, or perhaps a physical or material response in my external environment. Sometimes the answer is obvious; at other times it is unclear, in which case you may ask for clarity or more information.
On my best days I remember to ask the question throughout the day. I ask myself, "What’s important for me to know or do next?" And later, when I have finished something and am ready to begin my next task, I ask again, "What’s important for me to know or do now?"
Notice whatever you notice when you ask, and especially pay attention to the first thing that comes to my awareness. I always receive a response and I always take note of it. It may be a feeling, an inner knowing, something heard inside the head, something seen in the mind's eye, or perhaps a physical or material response in my external environment. Sometimes the answer is obvious; at other times it is unclear, in which case you may ask for clarity or more information.
On my best days I remember to ask the question throughout the day. I ask myself, "What’s important for me to know or do next?" And later, when I have finished something and am ready to begin my next task, I ask again, "What’s important for me to know or do now?"
Trusting the Voice in any and every moment
In closing, I’d like to share a final quotation from A Course in Miracles that illuminates this point of trusting the Voice, especially because it is taken from the final lesson of the Workbook, titled This Holy Instant Would I Give to You. Referring to the Voice, it states:
“And if I need a word to help me, He will give it to me. If I need a thought, that will He also give. And if I need but a stillness and a tranquil, open mind, these are the gifts I will receive of Him.”