Happy Feast Day my dear “Paulists”,

Monday, January 25, 2021 is the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, Apostle and as members of St. Paul, the Apostle Parish, that makes us—“Paulists”. Sort of! Anyways, I would direct you to read one or both of these accounts of St. Paul’s conversion: Acts 9:1-22 and Acts 22:3-16. (Actually, this might be a good family prayer time activity…with parental guidance, of course!)

I can only imagine the fear and anxiety in the “followers of The Way” when they encountered Paul for the first time after his conversion. He was doing a huge 180-degree turn from the persecuting hunter he had been. Could they trust him or was he luring them into a trap? Were their eyes and ears deceiving them? I can only imagine the amazement, praise, and thanksgiving that went up to God when they realized that Saul/Paul had truly been converted and had turned his life over to the Messiah Jesus! Paul had truly given his life to spreading the Good News of Jesus the Christ! Now if that’s not a miracle, I don’t know what is!

If we also look at the Gospel reading of January 25th, we find Jesus commissioning His disciples to “go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature” and to baptize them…. if they believe. We, too, as followers of Jesus, have been commissioned with this same task when we were converted to believe in Him. If you are a cradle Catholic, you still had to come to some point of conversion in your lifetime where you made the decision to be a true follower of Jesus and not just a “Catholic in name only”. Thus it is also Our Job to go into our world—our everyday world—proclaiming the Lordship of Jesus in our lives! The future of each person we come in contact with could depend on it! No, I am not saying that we have to wear a huge cross and call people out for their sins. That more than likely would turn them completely off! However, remember those “Random Acts of Kindness” you have heard about? By being a blessing to someone, we can affect their entire day—and that can be as simple as a hello, a positive affirma-tion, a few unplanned minutes of your time, an “I’m thinking of you” text or emoji, a surprise cup of coffee for your officemate, lending your ear if they need to vent (maybe followed by a prayer with them, if appropriate). St. Francis of Assisi said it this way: “Preach the Gospel at all times, and if necessary, use words.” He also said: “All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish a single candle”. And St. Francis even said: “If God can work through me, He can work through anyone.” So never doubt the influence you may have with someone!

So there you have it, my “Paulists”, if these two great saints can change their world, so can we, by the Grace and Mercy of God. Don’t be hesitant to do Acts of Kindness-Random or otherwise-for anyone! Be the change in the world that you wish to see! I have discovered an inspiring Facebook group called “Sparks of Kindness”. Debbie, the administrator of the group, says that “One spark of kindness can ignite a wildfire. Let’s spread smiles with random acts of kindness….” So if you need some suggestions of what you could possibly do to make someone’s day brighter, go to this Facebook page—everyday can be a “Son”shiney Day!

So, at the beginning of 2021, you had not taken the challenge presented in this column to do random acts of kindness and be more thankful, then use our feast day, the Conversion of St. Paul, to begin—walk in the footsteps of Jesus, His disciples, St. Paul, and St. Francis of Assisi,—YOU will have much to be thankful for!

Have A Blessed and thankful and converted week!