One Milestone Down

Yesterday evening I was on Facebook and a friend of mine posted asking the quickest and cheapest way to become ordained. Curiosity being what it is, I clicked on the status and saw that someone had posted a link to the Universal Life Church Monestary. There was a brief introduction video by (of all people) Conan O'Brien and a simple form. One of the questions, I kid you not, was if I was 13 years old or older. 

So I did. As of last night, I am legally ordained. I can perform weddings, baptisms, funerals, even start a church of my own. I can absolve sins and everything. And tomorrow I'll pay for the full package of paperwork and register with the state. 

Now, this was not some arbitrary whim. I have had the desire to become ordained since, well, junior year in high school. That was when I found out that it wasn't this obscure thing that only a select amount of people can do. This was also the time when my beliefs began to morph  from some abract religious rituals (okay, it's actually mainstream, with baptisms and all; but it was abstract to me. I didn't understand the WHY of it all) to a more personalized spiritual experience. I began reading the Bible multiple times a day and learning about the history behind it. Which, to me, was a natural transition from the Greco-Egyptian history, mythology, and philosophy streak I had been going through since the 6th grade. I started diving into the Romans, who they were, what they believed, and how they lived. In short, I wanted to learn about the world my Messiah lived in. And, no, I was not a normal child at all. 

Jump forward to last night and this one goal that has been with for well over a decade is finally accomplished. A long chapter of my life has abruptly ended and I'm left with the question: Now what?

Seriously, it's like waking up with a superpower that you don't quite understand and unsure of how to use. My friend Joy suggested that I could open a wedding chapel (which, admittedly, is a possibility, but not something I want to do with my life). I could actually start a church, but I feel like that is not my calling. The possibilities are endless...but I don't know exactly how to use them. Or even if I ever will.

The interesting thing is how fulfilled I feel right now. Like a giant piece of the unseen puzzle of my life has just been fitted into place. This, I fully believe, was meant to happen and now it has. I'm calmer than I have been all month. I'm feeling much more at peace with my life. I would even say that it feels like my life has more purpose than it ever has ever before. I may never know the implications of my decision last night, but now I begin the journey of "what now".