I imagine The Apostle Paul's life when he was Saul. It would have been a good life before! He would have definitely been a part of an elite group of learned scholars. He was a Pharisee, a Hebrew of Hebrews, of the tribe of Benjamin and he referred to himself as faultless and righteous, based on law (Philippians 3:4-5). Also, considering his status and position, his lineage, his sincere zeal and passion for the Pharisaic laws and his religion: prestige, privilege and power would have been synonymous with his name.
But then when he chose to go by his Roman name Paul, when he became a
follower of Jesus Christ, he experienced a 180 degree flip in his
life. He went from one extreme elite, “looked-up-by-the-world” group to the
other extreme hardships–filled, sufferings and prison-filled, being beaten and
flogged by people and authorities equally, “looked-down-by-the-world” group.
His only constant certainty in life was the uncertainty in his life! Most of
the time, he didn’t know where he would be going next or what he would be doing
next . He would do and act according to The Holy Spirit’s guidance. But he was
sure that wherever or whatever it was, it involved hardships and prisons (Acts
20:21-24). He tells us that hardships, ship wreck, death- like feelings and
many unpleasant experiences and circumstances were a part of his life. This
certainly does not seem like a good deal to land up with or from
Paul’s life we see that ,being a follower of Christ doesn’t mean a problem-free
lifestyle. But then having tasted both lives, Paul concludes that
the former prestigious things were a garbage, were a loss but his only gain was in Christ (Philippians 3:7-9). He would rather boast about
his present circumstantial hardships than his former
derived status or qualifications! King Solomon, the wisest, wealthiest king
ever, had come to a similar conclusion in Ecclesiastes.
I believe that the way he dealt with the uncertainties in his life and endured everything was because of his strategy of “shifting his focus”! Like I had mentioned in my previous article (lThe Ultimate Goal), he just shifts his focus ! He shifts his focus from Him to GOD, from the SEEN to the UNSEEN. And in the process of informing and giving an account to others through his letters, he is also giving himself a self-talk, an assurance and a re-assurance, a reminder to keep going through the storms because in the end of all this, there is eternal life with God. It is as if Paul is telling himself that these are the hardships that i have faced but then i have had God on my side, i have been abandoned by my own people but I have had God all along! So then just keep going and fight the good fight, focus on finishing the race but don’t loose your faith in the process!(2 timothy 4:7)
Paul enjoyed God’s joy and peace even amidst trials. He
experienced God’s privilege, power, peace, providence, presence- a different
set of ‘P’’s because God’s economy functions differently than the world’s. Paul
was in love with God and he considered everything that was happening was
beneficial for God’s glory and the advancement of HIS kingdom on earth. He
considered it a privilege to be chosen by God to be used as a part of
HIS great plan. He acknowledged his problems but refused
to dwell in the uncertainties of his life instead chose to rest in God’s
certain and omniscient character.
Focusing on our goal while keeping our faith intact is one of the many things we can adopt from Paul! Our focus is eternity. We should not loose our sight from it.
Also, We live by faith and not by sight!
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