Wednesday of the 3rd week in the ordinary time
Theme: The mercy of God
Today the church celebrates the feast of the conversion of St. Paul, a man who greatly persecuted the church of God, was given another chance at life. This goes to show that the mercy of God supersedes whatever mistakes we may have made at one time or the other in our life. God loves us so much and is ever ready to support us when we cooperate with his grace. Ordinarily it will be difficult to accept the fact that God was willing to use St. Paul as an instrument through which many nations will know God; taking into consideration the way he zealously fought the church in the past. Suffice it to say that God does not write anyone off, he gives us the opportunity to right whatever wrong we have made in our life.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, we have a lot to learn from the conversion of St. Paul, his fight against the church of God was done out of ignorance, so to say. After his conversion, he served God with more zeal than he has ever shown. He did so much to proclaim the gospel of Christ, and wrote extensively to the different communities; proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. He is referred to as an Apostle because of the massive work that he did and the way he witnessed to the gospel of Christ with his life after his conversion; remember he is not among the twelve Apostles of Christ. He was greatly committed to the preaching of the good news of the kingdom of God. The feast we celebrate today, shows that the mercy of God is greater than any evil or sin we may have committed at one time or the other in our lives. The most important thing is that when we receive the forgiveness and mercy of God, we have to remain steadfast in faith, just like St. Paul did after his conversion; his life never remained the same.
My brothers and sisters in Christ never be deceived by thinking that your sins are too much and cannot be forgiven by God. The mercy of God is greater than our sins. The most important thing is to be sincere with ourselves after receiving God’s mercy and forgiveness. Our ability to retrace our steps and begin to live a good life is very important in the conversion process. Always remember that God’s love for you transcends your human failings. May the Lord bless his words in our hearts in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.