Wednesday January 25, 2023

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“God does extraordinary works with ordinary and imperfect people.”

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Good News Reflection for:

Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, apostle
January 25, 2023

Today’s Prayer:

May the healing power that You have entrusted to Your Church, Lord, be provided to all with great mercy. May I find open hearts to Your transforming grace in all of them. Amen.

Subscribe to Today’s Saint Quote & Prayer:
gnm.org/SaintQuotes/

Today’s Readings:

Acts 22:3-16 or Acts 9:1-22
Ps 117:1bc, 2 (with Mark 16:15)
Mark 16:15-18
bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/012523.cfm
USCCB Podcast of the Readings:
bible.usccb.org/podcasts/audio/2023-01-25-usccb-daily-mass-readings

An extraordinary calling for ordinary people

The calling in today’s Gospel passage — “Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News” — seems more appropriate today than when Jesus first said it, thanks to the Internet. Here I sit behind a computer in Florida, sharing the Good News with people all around the world. Even when I sleep, my calling is fulfilled non-stop through the Good News Ministries website, blogs, Facebook page, YouTube channel, etc.

I never imagined having such an extraordinary ministry when I said yes to God’s call in 1977 as he invited me to become a Catholic. Or in 1982 when I became a published writer for his kingdom. Or in the mid-80s when I designed secular ads, which developed skills that later designed Good News webpages. I never imagined during Public Speaking class in high school (ancient days) that God would eventually call me to go into all the world for speaking engagements and via videos and podcasts.

I am just an ordinary person. (Just ask my husband!) God, however, is quite extraordinary, and he does extraordinary works with ordinary and imperfect people.

Judas and Ananias from today’s first reading were ordinary guys, yet they played a very important role in Church development because they treated a terrible persecutor with extraordinary kindness. First Judas opened his home in an ordinary gesture of hospitality for a very extraordinary reason, risking everything for a man who had been an aggressive enemy of Christians.

Then, while Ananias was having a nice, ordinary prayer time, Jesus appeared to him in a vision and said: “I want you to go to Straight Street on the other side of town, to the house of Judas. He’s got a visitor there and I want you to minister to him.”

“Sure. How do you want me to help him?” replied Ananias.

“His eyes have been blinded, and I want you to lay hands on him to restore his sight.”

“No problem. You’ve used me to heal people before. I know what to do.”

“Yes, but the man I want you to heal is Saul of Tarsus.”

“No! You can’t mean that! This man is surely here to arrest us Christians! You can’t be serious.”

“Go!” Jesus commanded. And Ananias went.

Judas and Ananias are never in scripture again. And yet, what they did had an impact on the whole world, even to this day. They helped to launch Paul into one of the most powerful ministries of evangelization for all time. What kind of an impact are you making as an ordinary person following God’s extraordinary call to spread the Good News?

For more on the topic of this subject, see our Wordbyte, “God does the Extraordinary with Ordinary People” @ wordbytes.org/master-needs-you/the-extraordinary-with-ordinary-people/

© 2023 by Terry A. Modica

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