Going to Confession is helpful when you are trying to learn if God is calling you to be a single person or married, a religious or a priest.
It is helpful, if for no other reason because it helps us grow in humility. We grow in our knowledge of God: The Lord, The Lord, a Merciful and Gracious God, slow to anger, and rich in kindness and fidelity.
And we grow in our knowledge of self: we relate to God with holy fear, by saying “yes” to God’s plan, even when it is mysterious, if for no other reason because it is God’s will and so without appeal.
No one really likes confessing our sins to a priest. And so, we make excuses to avoid it, like insisting that we can confess our sins directly to God. As hard as it is to go to Confession, there are good reasons to do it:
In addition, we also receive grace, which helps us to resist temptation, stop sinning, and do good deeds.
And the gravy on the taters is the GREAT feeling when we’re finished, like a great weight is lifted off us!
So, run, don’t walk to confession. It’s not the easiest thing, but we would be hard pressed to find something that benefits us more.
This is part of a vocations series by Archbishop Jackels titled, "What does God want me to be?" that was published between July and November of 2019.
PREVIOUS NEXT