Beware of getting spoiled

            I KNOW someone who’s now a priest but whose life story has amazed me no end. Before priesthood, he was a professional man working in a number of companies, receiving very good pay and other perks, and had everything to point to a very successful future.

            But he took a drastic, sharp turn in life, chose to take the road less traveled and became a priest, contented with sitting in confessionals for hours to hear and absolve penitents of their sins, give spiritual direction, say Mass, and do all the other priestly pastoral work, to which he gave his all.

            He said it was a matter of a divine vocation which he could not refuse. He said he felt an urge, an attraction to the priesthood so strong he could not sleep until he gave in to it. He was fully convinced his true happiness lay there. Turning his back on his prosperous career was really not a big sacrifice for him. It was in fact a relief.

            Before the priestly vocation entered his mind, he was more or less a normal guy. He had been a good son to his parents, a good brother is his siblings, and a very good student since grade school, with honors always coming his way.

            In fact, he managed to get a full-tuition with free board-and-lodging scholarship for his college at a prestigious university. And he finally graduated at the top of the class.

            His godfather, a rather well-to-do man, was so impressed with him that he gifted him with large amount of money on his graduation.

            “My boy,” he said, “I know you are responsible, I know I can trust you. Here’s an envelope with my gift for you. Use it wisely.” When he opened it, his eyes popped out as he saw a check with 100 grands written on it.

            He was very happy, of course, with the gift, but soon after that, he was grappling with a terrible internal turmoil. The idea came to his mind that he should give that amount away. He should not use it just for himself.

            He could not understand how things turned out that way. The thought haunted, pestered and tortured him for a long while, until he finally decided to give all of it to charity. He was torn badly by that experience, but he said he really felt a big sense of ease and comfort after that.

            That was how he discovered his vocation. He was meant for something else. God sometimes makes things like this happen to some individuals. And, of course, for a very serious reason.

            When we seem to enjoy a lot of blessings in life, we have to make sure we understand all of these come from God. They are not just a matter of luck. All of them come within God’s providence that governs not only one’s life, but also the destiny of the whole of creation, of the entire universe.

            We have to be wary of getting spoiled by them. That happens when we fail to realize things come from God for a purpose and we just expropriate them as if they are simply our own to use and enjoy in anyway we want.

            That kind of thinking is actually naïve. We would be forgetting very fundamental truths about us like, that we are creatures and not our own creator, that because of our created spiritual nature we necessarily have to live with the original spirit—God—and not a so-called free spirit that can go just anywhere.

            We have to be especially cautious of the good things in life, because they have immense intoxicating and spoiling powers over us. They have a great capacity to seduce our freedom, leading us to misuse and abuse it as when we live it without anchoring it on God and his laws.

            That’s the reason we have to be particularly mindful of our need to develop, protect and deepen our humility. Our problem always starts with pride which makes us forget fundamental truths and start creating fantasies.

            Pride is always at the center of every case of disobedience, envy, greed, lust, etc., that we commit. We should fully acknowledge that pride is very attractive to us and thus we need to exert great, abiding effort to contain if not crush it.

            It’s humility that brings us always in touch with the truth and reality, and that enables us to love God and serve others from the heart—and to be truly happy, like the priest I know.