Jesus wants to turn your life upside down—which, as it turns out, will be right side up. He wants to turn your marriage upside down, your parenting upside down, your personal finances upside down, your career upside down, your health and well-being upside down, your school and church upside down. If you let God turn your life upside down, you will be happier than you ever

imagined was possible. And you won’t just have happiness—you will have joy.

When Saint Edmund was born on Christmas Day in 841 AD, no one could have anticipated how Jesus would turn his entire life upside down. 

Edmund was raised as a Christian and fought alongside King Alfred of Wessex against the pagan Viking and Norse invaders. Eventually his army was defeated and Edmund was captured by the Vikings. He was ordered to renounce his faith and share power with the pagan Vikings, but he refused. Why? Because he had given his whole life to Jesus. 

Edmund the Martyr was beaten with cudgels, tied to a tree, whipped, and beheaded. And yet, in the midst of it all, he cried out to Jesus in faith and joy. He let Jesus turn his life upside down so thoroughly that death lost its sting and hope for heaven reigned in his heart.

How could someone face something so horrible and still have joy? Because that’s what Jesus does. He radically transforms the lives of the people he encounters, by rearranging their priorities. Perhaps that is why we avoid a deeply personal encounter with Jesus, because we are afraid of that radical transformation. What areas of your life do you want Jesus to turn upside down, to transform? And what areas of your life are you nervous to hand over to him? 

For more than two thousand years Jesus has been radically transforming the lives of men, women, and children in every corner of the world. But that is history. Now he wants to radically transform you and your life. Are you ready?



Feast Day: November 20 

Feast Day Shared By: Saint Gelasius I

Patron Saint of: Kings, Pandemics, Wolves, Torture Victims, and Protection from Plague

Symbols: A Wolf