Kind of a Big Deal
"Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time." 1 Peter 5:6 NIV
This is a special verse to me because I like to think of Peter, the author, as a mentor.
How much do you know about Peter? He is a favorite of mine. Peter and the prophet Isaiah…for different reasons.
Peter was bold.
Peter and his brother Andrew were the first two men that Jesus called into discipleship by saying: “Come, follow me, and I will send you out to fish for people.” (Matthew 4:19 NIV)
Can you imagine?! The long awaited Messiah they had been hearing about their entire lives, called them to Himself to do life with and learn from. The fact that Peter had a wife he had to be away from; how amazing was his wife?! To be ok with her husband, a fisherman, giving everything up to follow this guy at the drop of a hat?! The bold faith of them both is nothing short of inspiring to me. Not to mention how their family and friends probably thought Peter and Andrew were making a huge mistake by quitting their profession and livelihood. How Jesus called each of His disciples out of their established lives, their “normal” and into discipleship is worthy of an entire study on its own!
Like I said, Peter is one of my people.
Peter was also renamed by Jesus, as his given name by birth was Simon. (See John 1:42). Peter means “rock” and later on, Peter confesses Jesus as the Messiah. Jesus then tells him in Matthew 16:17-19 that “on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”
I can only imagine the weight of such a statement from Jesus, the Messiah Himself, to Peter. What a privilege! What a job to do! I am sure Peter knew it would not come easily nor without its challenges. Yet he willingly continued to follow Jesus.
But Peter was also the guy who denied Jesus 3 times for fear of his own life.
Who fell asleep in the garden when Jesus needed him to stay awake.
Who cut off a guys ear in anger.
Who got mad about a woman who used her best perfume on Jesus' feet instead of what Peter thought it should be used for.
Who sank in the waves standing next to Jesus on the water.
Peter was impulsive and full of emotion.
But impulsiveness doesn't have to always be a negative thing.
His impulsiveness in the famous scene of Jesus walking on water was a driving force in starting Seed & Root Project, actually. I knew I had to step out of the safe boat and onto the water to follow God's calling in this direction! Peter also gave me an example of what not to do once I got out there, which was to start looking at the waves crashing all around instead of keeping my eyes on Jesus. This is the only reason I have been able to keep the hope alive to push forward even when there is a storm brewing all around and it feels like it's all crashing down.
Peter was kind of a big deal. And when someone like that tells us we should humble ourselves—we need to listen. He was Jesus’s right hand man, so to say. The rock upon which the church was built. Brave enough to walk on water. One of the first disciples to preach the gospel and spread the Good News!!
So his words ring loud in my mind all these years later as I try to learn from a mentor gone before.
Humble yourselves. Peter knew a thing or two about how important it is to humble yourself. Spending time in the very real presence of the Word Made Flesh would do that to you. His perfect ways would often remind oneself how very short we all fall as humans.
I shared this on our devotional for this month, but it's worth repeating to help remind you of simple, practical ways to remain humble. (AKA I needed to hear this again!)
Routinely confess your sin to God
Acknowledge your sins to others
Receive correction & feedback graciously
Choose to serve others, not yourself
Be quick to forgive
Have a grateful heart
Speak well of others
Happy Digging, friends!
