SCRIPTURE Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. Luke 22:31
THOUGHT I feel a little prickling at the back of my neck when I read Jesus’ words to Peter on the night before the crucifixion. It is the tingling of human fear mixed with holy terror. Such things that go on in the unseen Kingdom of God!
Peter, this hero, this leader of disciples, this healer who later raises Tabitha from the dead, this one who heard the Savior’s words, “upon this rock will I build my church” – if this Peter is so vulnerable to the attack of Satan, what of me? And what of you? Do you think yourself so insignificant to the Kingdom of God that you will escape the hatred of the enemy? And when you have been sifted and are lying like a heap of chaff on the floor, what then? Will you try to put yourself back together like a self-made man or woman, and march on, shamed by your vulnerability? By God’s grace, no! Herein lies our only hope against the enemy of our souls: “I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.”
Have faith bold, brash, vulnerable, broken people; he who prayed for Peter is praying for you! (Heb. 7:25)
“While Lent is the journey into the most significant event of human history, the three great days [Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Saturday night Great Paschal Vigil] are a life-changing experience of God’s saving work in history. For Christians there is no time throughout the entire Christian year that is more crucial than the three great days. These are days to be set aside to enter into a worship that is the source of our entire spirituality, a moment in time that defines all time for Christians, a moment in time that is the very sum and substance of our spirituality for every season, every week, every Sunday, and every moment of every day. . . . It is imperative for the church to go beyond its present practice to recover the fullness of the three great days and to impress upon us all how important these days are, not only as historical events to be remembered but as events to be lived in our own dying to sin and rising to the new life of the Spirit. For herein lies the source and energy of our spiritual lives.“
Robert Webber, Ancient-Future Time Forming Spirituality Through the Christian Year
PRAYER Jesus, prayer warrior, advocate, High Priest, what words can we use to say ‘thank you’ that you live ever to intercede for us. Help us remember Peter’s story when we find ourselves sifted and lacking what we most need.
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Blogger Amy Clemens is the author of Walking When You’d Rather Fly: Meditations on Faith After the Fall. In it she explores childhood sexual abuse and how it impacted her faith (or lack thereof) for four decades. You’ll find not only her story, but better yet, the Big Story of God.
Check out Walking When You’d Rather Fly, and learn more about the book and Amy’s other ministries. You will also find her devotional work at Words of Hope.
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