The first reading from the Acts of the Apostles recounts St. Paul’s conversion. Probably many of us may not be able to relate to the character of St.. Paul as some of us might say, “Sinner, yes; but persecutor? No!” Or it may be due to the fact that many of us did not experience conversion in the manner by which St. Paul did, which was both sudden and spectacular. Lastly, some of us may even contend that St. Paul was special — he was chosen and called — and we were not. But are we really that different from him?

When we sin, are we not persecuting the Lord? When we continue to hurt our brothers and sisters through our words and deeds, are we not just like Saul? For us to have true conversion, do we need a spectacular event, like Saul, that will stun us and wake us up from our slumber?

What St. Paul’s conversion really tells us is that we need God’s grace to do God’s work in our lives. If with God’s grace a cruel persecutor could become the great Apostle to the Gentiles, he can surely work wonders in and through each one of us. We pray for God’s grace and loving presence in our lives.