John21:17-18 - Once more he asked him, “Simon, son of John, are you even my friend? ”Peter was grieved at the way Jesus asked the question this third time. “Lord, you know my heart; you know I am,” he said. Jesus said, “Then feed my little sheep. When you were young, you were able to do as you liked and go wherever you wanted to; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands and others will direct you and take you where you don’t want to go.”
Jesus appeared to a few of the disciples that went fishing on the Lake of Galilee one morning. Even though they had not caught any fish…they followed Jesus’ directions to cast the net on the other side of the boat and caught so many the net should have torn from the weight. They sat and ate a breakfast of fish and bread while they visited for the third time since His resurrection.
He pulled Peter off by himself to chat about His true feelings. He asked Him three times if Peter was His friend. Perhaps to remind Peter about the three denials he had made before His crucifixion….perhaps to meet Peter at His level of dedication for the moment…..perhaps just to let Peter know He loved him no matter what he had done. Then He spoke the strong message tat it was time for Peter to let go of the past….enter into a new frame of mind that was more self-sacrificial….and follow Christ the same way He had loved him.
What a great reminder that Jesus calls us all to a
new level of love when we come to know him. We can be children…demanding our
own way …pitching that tantrum…crying in the isles of life for what we want…crying
and having pity parties when things go south so bad we just don’t
understand. OR…we can follow Jesus’
directions and grow up …stretch out our hearts and hands to what God called us
to….be a servant to others like Jesus modeled for us.
I admit that it is not the easy road to take. I admit that I can’t count the many times
that I have failed to be the grown up. I take so much comfort in the promise
that God will never leave or forsake us….He takes us back with open arms …just
like He took Peter back after His epic failure to keep the promise He made to
the best friend He ever had. Jesus allows us to be human…He forgives what we
ask and reinstates us to use our failure to speak His love to others.
Father…thank you for the reminder that you love us beyond
what we can understand. Thank you for the reminder that love calls me to be a
grown up in Christ…to let go of my childish ways and be strong in the love that
only you can give me. Forgive me for the
many times that I have let the world trick me into sitting in my failures and
pain for longer than I needed to learn the lesson you intended when you allowed
that pain and failure in my life. Help
me to lean completely on you…and let your love strengthen and guide me to a
deeper understanding of your love for me.
Amen.
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