Did you know that all Saints have a past, and all Sinners have a future?

Did you know, All Saints have a past, and all Sinners have a future?

Eileen Renders

I would like to think that you and I often have similar thoughts, and these thoughts can surely stir up questions. Being curious, I believe, leads to research and hopefully, discovery. As a young Schoolgirl, I never would have believed that Saints could ever have been sinners. That is when I recalled how Mary Magdalene met Christ, how He saved her from being stoned through His words to the crowd, as He showed His mercy.

There are many other Saints that were not born as Saints, and led sinful lives. But they, too, found Christ’s love, mercy, and forgiveness, and that leads to following Him. A change of heart, a change in thinking, and a huge change in one’s lifestyle. Saint Augustine had a similar spiritual experience.

Too, I have even recalled, as I am sure you have, how Judas was willing to turn Jesus over to the soldiers to be hanged on the Cross. How Saint Peter, yes Saint Peter, denied Christ three times, and how Saint Thomas wanted to put his hand into Jesus’ side to see if he truly was alive, or if He was Jesus!

Saints and Sinners/ But then, if Saints are saved and yet are far from perfect, would we not all be called to become Saints? I am not referring to after death, but here and now. What must we do to become a Saint?

What first comes to mind, is to refrain from sin. To work one day at a time to remove addictions, whether it be food, sex, or alcohol. To do a personal inventory to see if we are greedy, lazy, selfish, etc.

Change as they say, usually does not happen overnight, without some sort of miracle from God. Therefore,

We must be patient with ourselves, make one change at a time, and pray more. When we do not hear God’s voice, we must trust that He is listening to us. If we just sincerely pray for God to lead us, give us strength, and determination, we are going down the right path.

We may never become Healers, or Prophets, and we should not be seeking adulation from anyone but God for putting out our best effort to become a better soul. Humility is one of those things that Satan loves to lay on us, “You deserve credit”, or “You are better than so and so.” Recognizing that this is Satan, and how much he wants us to fail, whenever you hear Him lying to you, simply run to Jesus with a little prayer.