“Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: "Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times." And [Peter] went outside and wept bitterly.” Luke 22:60–62
The group of children jumping rope are just a few of the 98 young missionaries who attend school at Bas de Sceaut which is located in the Artibonite of Haiti; they have HOPE. Their HOPE filled lives are the bright future for Haiti. I have been thinking a lot about prayer recently, because our country, these kids and our sinful world need a lot of prayers. I can go without a mask now, but still not completely feeling safe. Prayers, every Saturday from this point forward on this side of Heaven, I am going to share a prayer instead of a message and hopefully that will be on your heart and mind as you examine yourself and prepare for worship tonight or tomorrow morning.
Heavenly Father, every one of us live in a sin filled world and we, like Peter, have experienced failure as we have turned away from You. We have had many failures. They have left us sad, broken, depressed and disappointed in ourselves, and full of embarrassment. There are times when we see flashbacks of those episodes in words people say, mistakes ‘they’ make and dreams that jolt us when our sinful pasts return to haunt us. Lord, forgive us once again. Thank You for sending Your son Jesus to take the weight of all our sins upon Himself. Lord, renew our HOPE as we reflect on Peter, with whom we can so easily identify. Remind us that, just as You used him after his failures, that You will also use us and these Haitian kids to accomplish Your will. Lord, please help us individually to use our memories of failure to bring about a humility that sees Your grace for what it really is; amazing. Lord, help us find renewed encouragement and strength from Your Word. We look to You alone for the ability to HOPE again. Only You have the power to make something beautiful and good out of lives that are littered with the debris of thoughts we should never have thought, words we should never have said and deeds we should never have done. Our only source of relief comes through Your grace. Bring it to our attention again and again in those critical moments when discouragement makes it’s painful way into our life and make us grateful.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.