Sr. Katie Flanagan, FMA
If you had told me when I was growing up that one day I would become a Sister, I would have laughed in your face. I grew up in a vibrant faith community in Florida, where my family was deeply involved in the life of the Church. But being a Sister simply wasn't a path I even considered for my life.
As a student at the University of Florida, my faith became my own. I became involved in campus ministry, and during my senior year, while praying with Scripture, I experienced something unexpected. A quiet thought entered my heart: Maybe you're supposed to be a nun.
My immediate response was, "No, thank you."
After graduation, I spent several years teaching in the public schools. I loved my students, but every time I prayed, I felt God gently inviting me to consider religious life. It wasn't a loud voice or a dramatic experience. It was a quiet, persistent whisper that simply wouldn't go away.
Eventually, a priest friend encouraged me to visit the Salesian Sisters. I booked a flight to New Jersey, praying the entire trip, "God, please let me hate it."
Instead, I found peace.
While praying before the Blessed Sacrament during that first visit, I realized something had changed. For the first time in years, I wasn't wrestling with God. I simply felt at home. That peace didn't remove my fears, but it gave me the courage to trust that God was leading me where I would find my deepest joy.
It still took me two more years before I entered the convent, but saying yes to God's call has been the greatest gift of my life.
Looking back, I can see that God spoke to me through four things: Scripture, Our Lady, the sacraments, and the people He placed in my life. Those became the foundation of my discernment, and they continue to sustain my vocation today.
God rarely shouts. More often, He whispers. If we stay rooted in prayer, the Eucharist, Scripture, and a community of faith, we'll begin to recognize His voice. And when we trust Him, He will always lead us to something greater than we could have imagined for ourselves.