In this past year of service I’ve been constantly reminded of the life of St. Paul. His conversion into the faith is so simple, but amazing. Once he was a “blasphemer, persecutor, and a man of violence” (1 Timothy 1:13) but today he is known for being one of the greatest saints and evangelizers. All it took was for Christ to reveal Himself to him.
But isn’t this true for all of us? Christ invites us to see Him and be present with Him. And when we accept Him in our lives, we are changed and we look towards Him; there is no one else and there is no turning back.
In today’s Gospel (Luke 6:39-42), Jesus reminds me to love, but before that, He reminds me to allow Him to love me first and to experience His love. I’m reminded that Jesus lovingly corrects me in a multitude of ways and before I dare to correct anyone else, I ought to be corrected first and repent. Just as I sin, I am in constant need of experiencing God’s love; this will help the conversion of my own heart.
I’m currently reading “Persuasive Pro-life” by Trent Horn. There are a couple of lines in it that have caught my eye (or should I say, ‘my heart’). Horn states,
In Ephesians 4:15 Paul says we must “speak the truth in love.” The most loving thing we can do for someone is to tell him the truth and prevent him from being deceived.
I understand that this is in the context of defending the unborn by providing bullet proof evidence, but I still believe that this same truth can be applied in witnessing any part of the faith. When I share about God’s love, this community, or be an advocate for my family, school, the poor, or the unborn, the only thing I’m required to do is speak truthfully and with God’s compassionate, merciful, and life-giving love.
This world is flooded with lies and these distort the truth. In my experience, the truth is like fresh air. I deeply desire it, but sometimes I fail to recognize that it exists or I think I have to work and travel far to get it. As a result of my own spiritual lukewarmness, I reduce to accepting the air that fills the media, my busy city, and my secularized school. But when I look to the lives of St. Paul and Trent Horn, I perceive them as air filters; they remove all the dirty excess and reveal the pure essence of what is true: God’s love is everything.
I look to their lives and others as a form of “Godspiration”, which is anything/anyone that reminds me to live my life for the One who created it. In being inspired, I pray that I may be a bold witness and help prevent others from being deceived in the ways that I used to be deceived. More over, I pray that the people I speak to will meet Christ in a very personal way, whether that is through me or through a different encounter.
Jesus, I pray for a humble heart, that which reflects Your own and your mother’s. Teach me how to love the way that You love me.
Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us and the whole world. Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us.
St. Paul, pray for us. Amen.
