Lenten Journey: Find your Strength

A few years ago, I was blessed to join a Bible study in my Church that covered both of St. Paul's letters to the Corinthians and to the Romans. This made me develop a special relationship with St. Paul. The more I got to know this humble man, the more my appreciation for his teachings blossomed.

St. Paul served the Lord in humility, despite all the sorrows and trials that he had to endure because of his love for Christ. St. Paul taught constantly since he met Jesus on the road to Damascus. He was not afraid of the persecutions and the threats that he was constantly receiving. His only concern was that he would not be able to complete the service entrusted to him by God of being a witness to the Gospel. He was on a race against time.

The more I read his letters, the more I wanted to get to know St. Paul. In my search, I found a book which will be the third book that I recommend on this journey. It was published by Magnificat in 2008 and the title is: "Praying with St. Paul: Daily Reflections on the Letters of the Apostle Paul." The reflections are truly amazing and it gave me an insight as to why God had chosen St. Paul to spread His message.

If we were to compare ourselves with someone like St. Paul, we would wonder, what can God possibly want from us? There is no way that we could come remotely close. But St. Paul tells us that "God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are" (1 Cor 1:28), which basically means that God chose those that think they count for nothing to reduce to nothing those that think they are something. In other words, we have no excuse. No matter how inadequate we may think we are, God chooses people like us. Our deficiencies are used by God as a tool to help others. God "consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God" (2 Cor 1:4).

Even though we may think that we have nothing to offer, as followers of Jesus Christ we in fact possess everything (2 Cor 6:10). Our weaknesses should not be an excuse because it is in our weaknesses that we turn to Christ. That is why St. Paul tells us that "whenever I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Cor 12:10). It is in our weakness that the power of God dwells within us.

That is why St. Paul was so humble. He knew that his strength was in the Lord. Where is your strength?