GRACE REDEFINED PETER’S IDENTITY

“When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?’ ‘Yes, Lord,’ Peter said, ‘You know that I love You.’ Jesus said, ‘Feed My lambs.’ Again Jesus said, ‘Simon son of John, do you love Me?’ Peter answered, ‘Yes, Lord, You know that I love You.’ Jesus said, ‘Take care of My sheep.’ The third time He said to Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love Me?’ Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ He said, ‘Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.’ Jesus said, ‘Feed My sheep.’” (John 21:15-17)

Right there, Jesus did more for Peter -- and more for us -- than we can imagine. Jesus was telling Peter that he wasn’t finished. Peter was going to be the rock on which the mission of God would be established and carried forward. Jesus was telling Peter that his identity wasn’t going to be a denier of Jesus. (See Luke 22:54-62 for Peter’s denial of Jesus.) He was going to be a hero of faith and a legend in the church. In fact, Peter would one day very soon preach the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit, and three thousand people would be saved that day (Acts 2:14-42).

Sure, there were consequences to Peter’s denial of Jesus. Two thousand years later, we’re still studying the story. Peter’s denial didn’t get swept under the rug or erased from the memory bank of humanity. There were consequences for Peter, just like there are consequences to your decisions and my decisions, too.
 
Yet Jesus never focused on the failure. He focused on the restoration. Grace removed Peter’s guilt, and grace also removed Peter’s shame. Peter’s identity was no longer wrapped up in the denial. Peter failed, but he wasn’t a failure. He wasn’t useless. Peter’s life was no longer marked by shame. Grace redefined Peter as a friend and family member of God Almighty.
 
That’s what the grace of God does for you and me, too.
 
 -- Louie Giglio in “Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table” 

#6188

THE LOVE OF GOD FILLS OUR HEARTS

“For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love.”  (Romans 5:5b NLT)

There’s a God many of us try to outrun. The God we fear might be watching us from afar with a clipboard of our failures. The God we’re afraid to talk to because we assume He’s angry, distant, or disappointed. Maybe you’ve met this version of Him through harsh words, religious trauma, or your own shame.

But what if that God isn't real? What if the true God -- the one described in Romans 5:5 -- is pouring love into your heart right now, through the presence of the Holy Spirit? What if this God is exactly who your soul has been aching to find?

The God of Scripture is not out to condemn you but to claim you in Christ. Not to shame you, but to heal and transform you. His love is not conditional. It's not earned or revoked. It’s poured out, overflowing, even in our mess, even in our doubts.

This is a God who orchestrates your story with purpose. A God who uses even the broken pieces as breadcrumbs back to Him. He doesn’t delight in your failure, but rather rejoices in every step you take toward Him -- even the shaky ones.

Romans 5:5 reminds us that this love, God’s love, is not a distant idea. It’s a present reality. It dwells inside you, if you let it, through the Spirit He’s already given.

Today, take a deep breath. Rest in the quiet assurance that God is not who you feared -- but far better than you dreamed. He sees you. He loves you. And yes, He’s the God you’ve been looking for all along. 

-- SOUND BITES Ministry, compiled from a variety of sources

#6142

CHOOSING HUMILITY OVER PRIDE

“For who considers you as superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?”  (1 Corinthians 4:7 NASB)

Former Senator Bill Bradley of New Jersey tells the story of a humbling visit to a restaurant. The waiter brought over the rolls, but no butter. “May I have some butter, please?” Bradley asked.

The waiter gave a slight nod and wandered off, but ten minutes later, no butter. Bradley caught the waiter’s eye. “May I please have some butter?” The waiter barely acknowledged the request. After ten more minutes, still no butter.

“Maybe you don’t know who I am,” said Bradley. “I’m a Princeton graduate, a Rhodes scholar, and an All-American basketball player who played for the New York Knicks in the pros. I’m currently a United States senator from New Jersey, chairman of the International Debt Subcommittee of the Senate Finance Committee, chairman of the Water and Power Subcommittee of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and a member of the Senate Select Intelligence Committee.”

“Maybe you don’t know who I am,” said the waiter. “I’m the guy who’s in charge of the butter.”

What happened after that is unknown, but occasionally we all need to have someone burst our balloon of self-importance and bring us back to reality. Such experiences are healthy because they help us maintain a proper perspective about our accomplishments. Pride is an attitude that causes us to credit ourselves for our accomplishments and to blame others for our failures. On the other hand, humility is an attitude that views both our accomplishments and our failures from God’s perspective.

“God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”  (James 4:6b NASB)  

-- Robert Jefferies in “Choose Your Attitude, Change Your Life”

#5958

 

WINNING THROUGH DEFEAT

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”  (Romans:28 NLT)

If we win all the time -- or if we think we're winning when in fact we're not, for sometimes we fool ourselves -- the elements of life get out of proportion.  As a matter of fact, we need an occasional defeat to help us remember that God is God. Many people in public life -- especially entertainers, athletes, and politicians -- come to believe their own press releases and to think they're above the rules of ordinary human beings.  Wealth does the same thing to many people.

What happens in these more prominent positions happens also at every other level of life.  We see it on the playground, at the community club, in the classroom, and, saddest of all, in the family circle.  It's painful to see someone broken by defeat, but sometimes it is the most important experience a person will ever have.

It can be hard to know God if we're so enchanted with our own successes that we become unduly fascinated with ourselves. 

-- J. Ellsworth Kalas in “If Experience Is Such a Good Teacher Why Do I Keep Repeating the Course?”

#5887

TRUSTING IN GOD’S PLAN

"So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will be exactly as I have been told. But we will have to run aground on some island." (Acts 27:25-26, in reference to Paul's shipwreck on the Island of Malta)

Sometimes it takes a shipwreck to get us where God wants us to go.

I believe in planning. Failing to plan is planning to fail. But when we trust our plans more than we trust God, our plans can keep us from pursuing Him and His will. And sometimes our plans have to fail in order for God's plans to succeed.

Failure (or what at the time looks like failure) can become a cage if you let it. It can keep you from pursuing the passions God has placed in your heart. But there's life after failure. The door of the cage swings open, and the Wild Goose [the Holy Spirit] calls you to a life of new adventures. 

-- Mark Batterson in “Wild Goose Chase: Reclaiming the Adventure of Pursuing God”

#5637

RESPONDING TO FAILURE

Failure does not shape you; the way you respond to failure shapes you.

Sir Edmund Hillary made several unsuccessful attempts at scaling Mount Everest before he finally succeeded.  After one attempt he stood at the base of the giant mountain and shook his fist at it.  "I’ll defeat you yet," he said in defiance.  "Because you’re as big as you're going to get -- but I’m still growing."

Every time Hillary climbed, he failed.  And every time he failed, he learned.  And every time he learned, he grew and tried again.  And one day he didn’t fail. 

-- John Ortberg in “If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve Got to Get Out of the Boat”

#5273

FINISHING THE RACE - Part 2

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.”  (2 Timothy 4:7-8 NKJV)

The apostle Paul won the crown of righteousness because he finished well. The crown is awaiting all who are finishers. To finish the race means to be fully obedient to Christ all the days of my life. It means to humbly follow Christ and stay within the boundary lines He has set for us. It means to continue growing in purity of heart until the day I see Him face to face and become fully like Him (see 1 John 3:2-3). To finish the race means that I give myself fully to the work He assigned me so that when my life is done, I can say, along with Jesus, “I have brought You glory on earth by finishing the work You gave me to do.” (John 17:4 NIV).

Many Christians are not finishing well. But the power of Christ is available to counteract the pressures of this rebellious generation. Even where there has been failure, even when we stumble, God is able to pick us up, grant forgiveness, and give new purpose and power for living.

Commit yourself now to the way of endurance and overcoming. Like Paul, be a finisher.

-- Adapted from Ken Radke in “The Race Set Before Us”

#5226

LOVE JESUS MORE

“Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to His disciples after He was raised from the dead. When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?’”  (John 21:13-15 NIV)

“Do you love Me?” When Jesus asked Peter this question three times (see John 21:15,16,17), what was He really searching for?

Maybe Jesus was asking, “Peter, do you love Me more than yourself? Do you love Me more than the opinion of others? More than your own safety and comfort? More than your reputation? More than the memories of sin and failure? More than your career?”

Jesus was reaching into Peter’s heart and putting His finger on Peter’s core. Peter had just denied Jesus three times. Now Jesus was challenging Peter to love Him more -- and then to express his love through serving Jesus.

What about you? Is your motivation to serve Jesus an attempt to cover up guilty feelings? Or to earn forgiveness? Are you trying to prove something, to gain approval or recognition? Or is your primary motivation because you sincerely love Jesus more than anything?

Resolve to love Jesus more than anything. Then let your heart overflow in service. 

-- Adapted from Anne Graham Lotz in “Fixing My Eyes on Jesus”

#5078

LEARNING FROM OUR FAILURES

Our failures, placed in God’s hands, often lead to our greatest successes. Our most painful experiences become our defining moments by the grace of God, provided that we learn from them. This is what Paul was teaching in Romans 8:28: “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to His purpose.”

The challenge for many of us is that we spend so much time blaming others for our failures and expressing disappointment in God that we miss an opportunity to be teachable and to learn from the experience. God takes the dark moments, the failures and rejections in our lives, and uses them for our good -- if we allow it, if we humble ourselves and consider whether there is anything in us that needs to be changed…

I’ve known people who reached such a point when the world was crashing down around them, and instead of asking what they might need to change, they justified themselves and pointed a finger at everyone else. But there is great power in honestly assessing how we ended up where we are and inviting God to teach us, shape us, and forgive us. In this teachable position, humbled before God, we are often surprised by what happens next. 

-- Adam Hamilton in “Revival”

#4896

THE HEALING POWER OF CONFESSSION

“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.”  (James 5:16a NLT)

Confession is so difficult a discipline for us partly because we view the believing community as a fellowship of saints before we see it as a fellowship of sinners. We come to feel that everyone else has advanced so far into holiness that we are isolated and alone in our sin. We could not bear to reveal our failures and shortcomings to others. We imagine that we are the only ones who have not stepped onto the high road to heaven. Therefore we hide ourselves from one another and live in veiled lies and hypocrisy.

But if we know that the people of God are first a fellowship of sinners we are free to hear the unconditional call of God’s love and to confess our need openly before our brothers and sisters. We know we are not alone in our sin. The fear and pride which cling to us like barnacles cling to others also. We are sinners together. In acts of mutual confession we release the power that heals. Our humanity is no longer denied but transformed.

-- Richard J. Foster in “Celebration of Discipline”


#4788

PARENTING FAILURES

“We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”  (Romans 8:28 NIV)

Our failures. That’s the hardest area, especially when they have affected the lives of our loved ones. As our two children step out into the adult world it is a joy to see many beautiful things in their lives. But it hurts to see areas of need and struggle that stem in part from ways we have failed them [as their parents].

A friend reminded me recently that even these areas are part of the “all things” which God will use to make a man and a woman who will accomplish His unique purposes.

So when thoughts of my [parenting] failures push their way into my consciousness, I let His total forgiveness dissolve my regrets, and go on to praise Him who accepts us just as we are and lovingly works to make us more than we are. 

-- Colleen Evans, quoting a friend, in “Start Loving”


#4472

THE ZEIGARNIK EFFECT

“One thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”  (Philippians 3:13b-14 NASB)

Why do failures linger? Failures take on a life of their own because the brain remembers incomplete tasks or failures longer than any success or completed activity. It's technically referred to as the "Zeigarnik effect." When a project or a thought is completed, the brain places it in a special memory. The brain no longer gives the project priority or active working status, and bits and pieces of the achieved situation begin to decay. But failures have no closure. The brain continues to spin the memory, trying to come up with ways to fix the mess and move it from active to inactive status.

-- Perry Buffington

#4088

CHRIST’S MESSAGE HAS TWO WORDS

“Woman, where are they? Has no one judged you guilty?" She answers "No one, sir." Then Jesus says, "I also don't judge you guilty. You may go now, but don't sin anymore." (John 8:10-11 NCV)

If you have ever wondered how God reacts when you fail, frame these words and hang them on the wall. Read them. Ponder them. Drink from them. Stand below them and let them wash over your soul. Or better still, take Him with you to your canyon of shame. Invite Christ to journey [back] with you... Let Him stand beside you as you retell the events of the darkest nights of your soul.

And then listen. Listen carefully. He's speaking. "I don't judge you guilty." And watch. Watch carefully. He's writing. He's leaving a message. Not in the sand, but on a cross. Not with His hand, but with His blood.

His message has two words: “not guilty.”

-- Max Lucado in “He Still Moves Stones”

#4073

A DEFINING DECISION

On February 19, 1519, the Spanish explorer Hernan Cortes set sail for Mexico with an entourage of 11 ships, 13 horses, 110 sailors, and 553 soldiers. The indigenous population upon his arrival was approximately five million. From a purely mathematical standpoint, the odds were stacked against him by a ratio of 7,541 to 1. Two previous expeditions had failed to even establish a settlement in the New World, yet Cortes conquered much of the South American continent.


What Cortes is reported to have done after landing is an epic tale of mythic proportions. He issued an order that turned the mission into an all-or-nothing proposition: "Burn the ships!" As his crew watched their fleet of ships burn and sink, they came to terms with the fact that retreat was not an option. And if you can compartmentalize the moral conundrum of colonization, there is a lesson to be learned. Nine times out of ten, failure is resorting to Plan B when Plan A gets too risky, too costly, too difficult. That's why most people are living their Plan B. They didn't burn the ships. Plan A people don't have a Plan B. It's Plan A or bust. They would rather crash and burn going after their God-ordained dreams than succeed at something else.


There are moments in life when we need to burn the ships to our past. We do so by making a defining decision that will eliminate the possibility of sailing back to the old world we left behind. You burn the ships name "Past Failure" and "Past Success." You burn the ship named "Bad Habit." You burn the ship named "Regret." You burn the ship named "Guilt." You burn the ship named "My Old Way of Life."


-- Mark Batterson in All In




#3725

PLANS BIRTHED IN PRAYER

I believe in planning. In fact, failing to plan is planning to fail. But I also believe this: One bold prayer can accomplish more than a thousand well-laid plans. So go ahead and plan, but make sure you circle your plans with prayer. If your plans aren't birthed in prayer and bathed in prayer, they won't succeed. This I know from personal experience. Prior to our church plant in Chicago, I developed a twenty-five year plan. That well-laid plan was a project for one of my seminary classes, and I actually got an A on it. In reality, I should have gotten an F because it failed. I still have the twenty-five year plan in my files. It keeps me humble. It also reminds me that "unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain." (Psalm 127:1)

Few things are more painful than a failed plan, but I've always drawn a little bit of levity and humility from the old adage "If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans." While we're busy planning, sometimes God is chuckling. And if our plans are way off, that contagious chuckle probably makes its way through angelic ranks like a laugh track. It's not a vindictive chuckle, as if God relishes our failure. I just think God is sometimes amazed at how small our plans are. He allows our small plans to fail so that His big dream for us can prevail. So keep planning like it depends on you, but make sure you pray like it depends on God. Prayer is the alpha and omega of planning. Don't just brainstorm; praystorm.

-- Mark Batterson in The Circle Maker


#3197

GONE FISHING

"Simon Peter said, 'I am going fishing.' [The disciples] said to him, 'We will go with you.' They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Just after daybreak, [the resurrected] Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, 'Children, you have no fish, have you?' They answered Him, 'No.' He said to them, 'Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.' So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish." (John 21:3-6 NRSV)

The events we call tragedies, set-backs, and failures are opportunities for God. He knows how to draw glory even from our ruin. The hour of deepest humiliation, when we feel defective and utterly disqualified, may be the hour that God uses us in unparalleled ways. Years of "wasted" efforts may be the years when God plants an eternal harvest; though we have fished all night and caught nothing, the Great Angler is still double-baiting His hooks.

-- David Roper in Seeing Through


#3194

WHAT DO WE WORSHIP?

"They did wicked things that aroused the LORD’s anger. They worshiped idols, though the LORD had said, 'You shall not do this.'" (2 Kings 17:11b-12 NIV)

Since failure is our unforgivable sin, we are willing to ignore all forms of deviance in people if they just achieve the success symbols which we worship.

-- Anthony Campolo in The Success Fantasy


#2726

THINKING ABOUT OUTCOMES

"Peter answered [Jesus], ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’ He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came towards Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ " (Matthew 14:28-30 NRSV)

Failure is not an event, but rather a judgment about an event. Failure is not something that happens to us or a label we attach to things. It is a way we think about outcomes.

-- John Ortberg in If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve Got to Get Out of the Boat


#2580

TRUE REPENTANCE

Repentance is not necessarily the gloomy and self-loathing practice it is sometimes made out to be. To repent is not to be confirmed in what that little voice within keeps whispering: that you are no good, that everything bad that happens to you is your own fault, that if only others knew what you were really like, they would cease to care for or be interested in you. No.

True repentance begins with the felt knowledge that we are loved by God… Repentance consists not so much in flagellating ourselves over our "failures" as in courageously and painstakingly reorienting our priorities, unlearning old patterns, turning our faces, like the sunflower, toward the dawning of the light of God.

-- Wendy M. Wright in The Vigil: Keeping Watch in the Season of Christ's Coming (Nashville, Tenn.: Upper Room Books, 1992, used with permission)


#2491