“God has placed a deep yearning in my heart to guide others into a more intimate relationship with him — to be a vessel of his peace, love and presence in both their most cherished and most challenging moments,” reflects Chance Armstrong, a new seminarian of the Diocese of Gaylord, as he embraces his propaedeutic year of formation.
Reflecting on his vocational journey, Chance shares: “The call to the priesthood was not sudden — it was gently and patiently nurtured by God over many years. As a convert to Catholicism, I began with no formal faith foundation. Much of my early life was shaped by a secular worldview, but in time, the light of Christ began to break through, transforming the way I saw myself and the world around me.”
Before answering God’s call to the priesthood, Chance, 33, walked a very different path — one marked by worldly success and cultural achievement. He first explored the vibrant artistic world of New York City, working as both a performer and administrator in the theater scene. Later, he earned a master’s in business and transitioned into the hospitality industry, climbing the corporate ladder to
senior management.
“I made a good salary, drove a nice vehicle and lived in a beautiful apartment,” Chance recalls. “By the world’s standards, I had ‘made it.’ But despite all that, I felt an emptiness inside that no material success could satisfy.”
Unbeknownst to him at the time, God was already beginning to stir his heart. Just before leaving New York City in 2015, Chance experienced what he now sees as a moment of divine intervention.
“One Sunday afternoon, I happened to walk past St. Patrick’s Cathedral,” he reflects. “I didn’t know what was inside, but I felt an overwhelming urge to go in. I sat quietly near the back, simply taking in the awe-inspiring beauty. Without even realizing it, I was attending my very first Catholic Mass. I don’t remember the Gospel reading or the homily, but I remember being overwhelmed by the sacredness — the incense, the kneeling, the music, the vestments. It was all so beautiful. And I knew I had to return.”
Chance’s faith journey continued as he moved from city to city for work, but in 2019, God led him to Detroit — where his wandering heart would finally find a spiritual home. It was there, at St. Aloysius Parish, that he joined a parish community, began regularly attending Mass at the same church and encountered the pastoral heart of Father Mario Amore of the Archdiocese of Detroit.
“Father Mario radiates a shepherd’s love,” Chance shares. “His passion for the faith and care for souls awakened something in me — a longing to go deeper, to respond to this love that had quietly pursued me for so long.”
Though the COVID-19 pandemic brought his time in Detroit to an end, it had already become a turning point in his life. In 2022, Chance returned home to Northern Michigan — not only to heal and reconcile relationships with family, but also to fully embrace the faith that had captivated his heart.
He entered the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA), committing himself to the Church with both humility and joy.
Under the spiritual direction of Father Benjamin Rexroat, Chance was baptized and joyfully received into the Catholic Church at the 2023 Easter Vigil. Chance is the first in his immediate family to become Catholic. He is the eldest of two sons to the late Jim Armstrong and Liz Strandell Armstrong.
“Since that sacred night in 2015, I have been growing in my faith every day,” he says. “I am a regular adorer of the Blessed Sacrament, a frequent penitent in the sacrament of reconciliation and I attend Mass and receive the Eucharist multiple times a week. I serve my parish as a lector and extraordinary minister of holy Communion, and I strive to be actively present in the life of my parish community.”
Chance’s path toward priestly formation is born from a deep love for the beauty, truth and tradition of the Catholic Church.
“I’m not a theological scholar,” he says with humility, “but I have encountered extraordinary pastoral leadership — priests who have embodied Christ’s presence to me. Now, I feel called to do the same for others.”
He continues: “As someone who had no religious upbringing, my conversion and vocational discernment are powerful reminders of God's relentless love and mercy. To any man who feels a call stirring in his heart, I urge you to respond. The seeds of vocation are planted by the divine gardener — and all it takes is your ‘yes’ for him to begin the harvest.”
May God, in his infinite wisdom, continue to bless Chance and all those discerning a call to the sacred priesthood. And through the intercession of our Blessed Mother, may hearts be strengthened, souls be nourished and vocations be courageously lived out in love and faith.
