06/24/2026
BECOMING DR. GREEN | PART III: THE SANCTUARY
When I think about calling, I don’t think first about a title, a degree, or even a profession.
I think about sanctuary.
I remember sitting quietly in church sanctuaries as a child. The scent of pews and Bibles. Sunlight filtering through stained-glass windows. The creaking of old floors and walls that had witnessed generations of prayer, praise, and perseverance.
Over the years, I have encountered sacred spaces across cultures, traditions, and communities. Some were churches. Some were not. Yet what remained constant was the presence of the divine and the reminder that I belonged to something greater than myself.
The sanctuary became more than a place. It became a grounding. A reminder that my calling was not something I had to create. It was something I had to answer.
Standing in the historic sanctuary of Mother Bethel AME Church, where generations have gathered to worship, organize, learn, and dream, I was reminded that every step of this journey belongs to God. To the One who called me while I was yet in my mother’s womb. To the communities that nurtured me. To the ancestors who made the path possible.
The sanctuary reminds me that calling is not about recognition.
It is about remembering who called you in the first place.
