And for this reason we too give thanks to God unceasingly, that, in receiving the word of God from hearing us, you received not a human word but, as it truly is, the word of God, which is now at work in you who believe. (1 Thessalonians 2:13 NABRE)
Saint Paul encourages believers in Thessalonica by the way he gives thanks to God. I can only imagine the satisfaction he felt knowing that he, a stranger from far away who came to town one day speaking of a Jewish preacher named Jesus, was able to see how God, through him, brought so many to faith.
And Paul is so clear on how this happened, the thought is so internalized with him, that he slides it into a statement of thanksgiving, almost too casually to be noticed. God's word, which existed before the beginning of the creation in Genesis, which is Jesus himself (John 1:1), which we know to be the Bible, this very word uttered by the creator changed the people to whom Paul spoke it! The word of God was received by them, they recognized it as far more than Paul's mere words, they welcomed it, and the word began to work in them.
Today, I will notice the word of God at work in me.
Saint Louis of France, patron of barbers and grooms, pray for us.
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