While carrying forward his constructive work in Chapel Hill and in Durham, Cheshire did not overlook his preparation for the priesthood, although, as he remarked, he did not "feel that impatience to get out of the Diaconate," which he often observed in young clergymen. During his leisure hours he read widely and thoroughly, and was well prepared when the time came for his advancement. At the close of the diocesan convention, held in Winston-Salem, he was ordained priest by Bishop Lyman in St. Paul's Church on May 30, 1880. He was presented for ordination by Rev. John E. C. Smedes, and the sermon for the occasion was preached by Dr. Alfred Watson, later Bishop of East Carolina. Commenting upon the ordination service, the _Church Messenger_ said of Cheshire: "thoroughly active, he will do a work that will tell in the diocese." During his ministry in Chapel Hill Cheshire received calls from several parishes, all of which offered him a better salary than he was then receiving, but he usually declined them by return mail. In the winter of 1881 the vestry of St. Matthew's, Hillsboro, and the church in Burlington asked him to take charge of their parishes. This prospect appealed to him strongly, since he would live in Hillsboro, his wife's old home, where they had many kinsfolk and friends. Before taking any action, however, he consulted Bishop Lyman, who replied that he preferred Cheshire to remain in Chapel Hill where he was doing a good work. He accepted the Bishop's decision and declined the call to Hillsboro. About two months later Cheshire received a call from St. Peter's, Charlotte, which he declined immediately. Hearing of this action, Bishop Lyman wrote him that he wished him to accept the charge of St. Peter's. Cheshire replied that he had refused to go to Charlotte because the Bishop had instructed him, only a few months earlier, to remain in Chapel Hill. Bishop Lyman, however, answered that he had directed the vestry of St. Peter's to call him again "_and he would see to it_" that Cheshire accepted. The call was accordingly renewed, and Cheshire went to Charlotte to interview the vestry. He told them that he accepted the charge because he felt it his "duty to respect the wishes of the Bishop." Cheshire often remarked that during his ministry he never accepted a call to any parish, explaining that the Bishop had directed him to go to Chapel Hill and later to the parish in Charlotte. This was not said in a spirit of criticism of his Bishop but merely as a statement of fact, for he also declared that he "preferred" to have his work given him. Throughout his long life of service he always had the feeling of doing a work assigned to him.