The true nature of a second chance

Some journeys are harder than others.  One of the hardest is when you have to go back to revisit the place where you failed.  Failing at something effects us in so many ways.  Sometimes it’s depression, sometimes it’s physical.  The thoughts and feelings that you go through when you fail at something that is important to you can be devastating.

Peter was back in his boat, fishing.  The last few days had been awful and he certainly felt the ill effects of failure.  To make matters worse, the fish weren’t there, so he felt like a failed fisherman as well.  He was with John and each time they tossed their massive net, they pulled it back in to find nothing inside them.  To Peter, it must have felt like the whole world was punishing him for failing at such an important thing a few days prior.

Then they both heard a voice from the shore, calling out to them.  “Catching any fish?”  I’m sure that Peter and John both thought that it was just a casual villager, trying to be polite.  The same way fisherman today ask the very same question.  “Are the fish biting?  Did you catch anything?”

But today, the only answer they could give was the one they shouted back at the shore, “No!”

Like many people, the person on the shore offered advice.  “Try the other side of the boat!”.  I’ve done the same thing, by telling someone to try the other side of the lake.  I can almost imagine Peter sighing and thinking to himself, “well why not, nothing else is working”.  I’m sure he thought that once again, he would be met with an empty net.  Despite those feelings however, Peter and John tossed their net on the other side of the boat.  They waited, as usual, before they could pull it in.  But something quite odd happened.  Immediately, the line to the net grew taught.  With what I’m sure was surprise, they pulled in their net and it was full!

Now, at this point, I have to try and understand what Peter was feeling.  For days now, he had been feeling like a failure.  Suddenly, good fortune had struck and I’m sure he was standing their with his mouth hanging open in shock.  I’m certain that Peter, the one who always spoke quickly, was stuck dumb.  But John on the other hand…..

No, John was feeling something a little different.  Oh, I’m sure he was amazed, but John knew that this was no ordinary run of good fortune.  Not when they had been fishing all morning with nothing to show for their efforts.  John looked back to the shore, and it hit him.  “Peter!  It’s the Lord!”

At this point, Peter whipped his head back to the person on the shore and saw the same thing John did.  It was Jesus on the shore!

Despite what he had done, despite what he was feeling, Peter did the only thing he knew to do.  He jumped out of the boat and swam as fast as he could to the shore… to Jesus.  Finally reaching the shore, he hauls himself out, wet, dripping and chilled, and sees Jesus.  Instead of speaking immediately, and making excuses, he saw what Jesus was doing.  Jesus had prepared a bed of coals to cook fish on.

Just days ago, Peter had betrayed his friend, his best friend, and the man who he said was the true Son of God.  Betrayed him!  There he stood, not knowing what to say, or even what to do.  I’m sure that he was expecting something along the lines of “I told you so”, but whatever he was expecting, was not what he got.  For once, Peter is silent.  What words could he say to his Master?  This moment sends shivers up and down my spine.  It is so Holy, that words can not explain it.  Peter, facing the one he had betrayed, watched as the Savior is offering him breakfast.  Once more, Peter is finding Grace in the presence of Jesus.

Now, think about your own failure.  Are you to scared to admit it?  To scared to talk to God, like Peter?  You shouldn’t be.  Just like Jesus offered no condemnation to the woman who was about to be stoned, he offered none to Peter, who had betrayed him.  How can you expect less from him yourself?  Jesus knows us, knows us better than we know ourselves.  He knows that there will be times when we fail.  But he won’t hold it against us, no, instead, he will do what he did for Peter.

You might think about doing the same thing Peter did.  Just stand in his presence, and be silent.  Stand still and wait.  After all, sometimes that is all a soul can do.  To repentant to speak, too hopeful to leave.

You stand there, and you will be amazed.

He has come back.  With love.

Keep trying, keep going, leave your failures in the past, and move forward and try again.  This time, with Him.  That’s the true nature of a second chance.

~ Kev

Supreme Jealousy

One day, God stood upon the earth that he had created.  It was the day.  It was the next part of his plan in creation.  The last and greatest part, which he had saved for last.  It was the sixth day.

I can imagine Him standing on the earth that he had brought forth from the void.  I can imagine Him looking around, smiling at everything He had created.  Surely this day, of all days, He was in the best mood ever.  For this was THE day.  It is easy for me to imagine that it was a perfectly beautiful day.  A blue sky, everything green, animals calling out, waves crashing on the beaches.  He stood in a special place, a place He had created for His last act of creation.  It was a garden.

Then, God leaned down, took earth in his hand and began to make a form.  If we could see back in time, that form would have seemed familiar, as it would have looked like the figure of a man.  With the type of love only God can completely comprehend, He formed His clay man.  I can imagine Him using His will and fingers to shape the finest details, from hair to fingernails to eyelashes.  It was a labor of love, and we know He worked on it for a large part, if not the whole part, of the day.

Then, He was satisfied.  The form was shaped just so.  Perfect.  But not yet finished.  I can imagine that curious angels, servants of God, gathered around.  They knew what He was doing.  They had heard His Voice echo out across the universe.

“Let us make man in our image”

Curious angels?  Is that so hard to believe?  Not to me.  For what God was making was human, totally different from them and without doubt, His greatest creation of all.  I can see them in my minds eye, standing off, giving God room, whispering among themselves.

“Just look at the face, it’s…. it’s beautiful!”

“And the hair!  Will it be soft when He is done?”

“Look at the detail!”

“Didn’t He say He was going to make man is His image though?  Something seems to be missing.”

I’m sure God heard every whisper and probably smiled at each one, especially the last.  But He wasn’t finished quite yet.  The finishing touch still had to be applied.

Then God reached out, and he gave.

I’m sure the angels watching gasped in astonishment.  I’m sure some of them exclaimed in surprise.

“He made it eternal!  It truly is like God!”

Once God put life into the first human man, I’m sure the angels tried to crowd around, to touch, to get a better look, and I can almost hear God saying, “no, no, give him some room.  Soon he will awaken, and then you can look”.

God had done it.  His final creation of six days of labor, He had created man, in His image, with free will and a soul.  An object of flesh, mortal flesh, with an eternal soul.  With free will.  A will to choose to love God or not.  I’m certain it was the talk of the angels around the water cooler for weeks.

But one wasn’t so amazed.  One was jealous.  How could God have done this?  How could He have created a creature with free will and a soul?  Something even he didn’t have.  No, the one known as Lucifer, the fallen one, the angel who defied God’s ultimate supremacy, had a case of supreme jealousy.

Already he was set against God, wanting to be more than he was.  In one single day, God had created a creature that would forever, no matter what, be greater than him.  He was angry, jealous, confused.  But one thing Lucifer wasn’t, was stupid.  So he hatched a plan.  He would bide his time.

Shortly after, God created a companion for the first man, Adam, and her name was Eve.  The first woman.  No doubt she was as beautiful as Adam was.

And Lucifer bided his time.  When he saw his opportunity, he took it, and started a conflict that has existed through the ages.  He talked Eve into eating the forbidden fruit, then Adam did the same.  Lucifer had gotten God’s creation to defy him.  Lucifer’s punishment was to be cast out, and no doubt he hoped the same would happen to them.  Or better yet, God would destroy them.

But Lucifer doesn’t, and can’t, understand God’s love.  Although he cast them from the garden, and gave them hardships to deal with, His love never waivered.  No, man was His greatest creation and nothing Lucifer could, or would, ever do would alter that fact.

We know that the conflict between man and the father of lies has already been won.  It’s a war that God fought for us.  The ultimate victory came when Jesus died on the cross for all mankind.

But it’s wonderful to go back, and revisit the very first conflict, and know that the victory started then and there.

~ Kev