November is a month that the Church has, from ancient times, set aside to pray for all of the dead and to ponder our own death. Pondering our own death is to think about that real day when we will stand before the Lord and render an account to Him of what we did with our lives, how we spoke, acted — and failed to act (cf. Matthew 25:31-46; Rev 20:12-3). We all desire to hear the Lord say those most extraordinary words to us, “Well done! Good and faithful servant! Enter into the joy of your Master!” (Matthew 25:21).

The enemy is forever trying to intimidate. He whispers lies into our minds that are variations on this theme: “You’re all alone. You’re outnumbered. You’re undermanned. You don’t have a chance.” But he is a liar. The truth is, we are anything but alone. And not only are we not alone, we are part of a communion that exceeds all we can comprehend. 

Paul came to Thessalonica and began preaching Jesus to people who had literally never heard His name before. Some of these people were Jewish, and many others were steeped in idolatry and the worship of the Roman gods. But the power of the Gospel, that is, the announcement of the wonders that God had done for the entire human race in the person of His Son, combined with signs and wonders and the power of the Holy Spirit at work, led people to turn from worshiping idols to worshiping the one, true God.

Too often, I think, we imagine the saints to be statues or stained glass windows, and forget that they were men and women with pasts, some of which make some of us blush, and others of us feel downright, well, hopeful!