Lenten Daily Devotional 2022
Palm Sunday, April 10, 2022
Day 40: Peter's Worst Day
"Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?”
John 18:11 (NIV)
John 18:11 (NIV)
We don’t often think about our bad days. I trust you know what kind of days I mean. Not the days when something is inconvenient or frustrating or your expectations aren’t met. I mean the bad days. The days of loss and confusion. The days of fear and anger. The days when you fail at everything good, when you feel like a claw of piercing ice reaches into your being and grips your heart. The days that fill us with panic or shame.
Today we read about such a day for Simon Peter. On a special day with his closest and most beloved friends, he arrogantly argued with them, violently attacked a church official, cowered in fear and betrayed the man he believed to be Messiah. Luke’s Gospel tells us after all this he “wept bitterly.”
Did this bad day have a silver lining for Peter? Were good things produced from his actions? Was his faith in Jesus strengthened as a direct result of his words or choices?
No, no and no.
Nothing.
Today we see a man, not much different than us, a servant of the living God, have a tragic day that ended with him at the lowest point of his life.
On your worst days, remember Peter and Jesus’ personal, passionate love for him which did not change based on this day.
Just as His love does not change for you.
--David Collins
Today we read about such a day for Simon Peter. On a special day with his closest and most beloved friends, he arrogantly argued with them, violently attacked a church official, cowered in fear and betrayed the man he believed to be Messiah. Luke’s Gospel tells us after all this he “wept bitterly.”
Did this bad day have a silver lining for Peter? Were good things produced from his actions? Was his faith in Jesus strengthened as a direct result of his words or choices?
No, no and no.
Nothing.
Today we see a man, not much different than us, a servant of the living God, have a tragic day that ended with him at the lowest point of his life.
On your worst days, remember Peter and Jesus’ personal, passionate love for him which did not change based on this day.
Just as His love does not change for you.
--David Collins
Prayer Focus: Pray for those in our community who struggle with drug and alcohol addiction. Pray for them to find the hope and help they need to find recovery.
Modern Day: Garden of Gethsemane
If you were able to travel to Israel today and search for the location of the Garden of Gethsemane, these are some of the images you would see. The "Church of the Nations" enshrines the possible location of the rock that Jesus prayed at in the Garden. This area is filled with olive trees, though not the original trees during Jesus day. They could possibly be "offshoots" of the original trees. This location is on the Mount of Olives and l0oking down from Garden, you can see the city of Jerusalem.
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