As I was reading comfortably in my recliner, enjoying my morning chai tea latte, my cell phone buzzed, breaking the silence and stillness of the moment. I glanced at the number on the screen, not recognizing who was calling, I chose not to answer the call. Of course, my natural curiosity led me to wonder who called and why they called, but those answers remain a mystery.

But I started to think about this notion of “missing a call” and how and why we miss calls in our relationships with others and with the Divine.

Innocently enough, we may miss a call because we didn’t hear the phone ring or were engaged in doing something else that we felt was more important. How often do we not hear God when God seeks our attention and desires to communicate with us, but our busyness and priorities keep us from setting aside time to connect with the One who loves us and is eager to be with us?

On the flip side, we may hear the phone ring or see the caller’s number on our cellphone but don’t want to answer because we don’t want to talk to the caller. He or she might demand too much of our time, talk incessantly, and never give us a chance to express our thoughts, resulting in a one-way monologue. Are our conversations with God like this? Do we feel God demands too much from us? Or, do we do all the talking and not much listening?

Other times, we might recognize a phone number but are inclined to ignore or avoid the call. We’re good at making excuses for not responding to calls. Some of these reasons might be that the call came at an inconvenient time or is interrupting what we are doing.

What if a caller, like God, simply wants to let us know they are here for us, reaching out to let us know they miss us and are excited to hear our voice? Another caller may know that we need to hear much-needed encouragement or comfort. Maybe God is using a caller to shine a light on something we’ve been struggling with and wants to let us know that we are not alone. And maybe another caller’s gift of listening and presence may be God’s way of assuring us that we are heard and seen. Certainly, like all good friends, God misses us too.

God indeed calls in many ways, and it’s not always easy to know that God is calling us. We may miss out on the ways God calls us. The way God communicates with us may be different for each of us, just as we each may see and hear God differently. We need to attune our senses, our hearts, and our minds to become aware of the many ways God communicates with us, or we will miss God’s call to us. By knowing ourselves, we can know God better, too, as we know we are made in the image and likeness of God–a simple but profound message that we can easily miss.

If you are a single Catholic woman between the ages of 18-45, maybe God is calling you to consider a life as a religious sister. Perhaps you are being called to use your God-given gifts to be a messenger of hope, love, and peace to God’s people. Are you open to this possibility? Do you want to talk with someone who will listen to your story and concerns and help you discern how God is calling you to live your best life? Just click here to contact us.