We begin with the first letter Peter, the apostle of Jesus, wrote. This letter will help you and me walk through life every day like true children of God.

When I think of Peter, the first image that comes to mind is him denying Jesus. Although Jesus foretold it, Peter strongly dismissed it and boasted, “No, I will never deny You, my Saviour”.

And when the paw-paw struck the fan, Petrus got scared. He was frantic. His dreams were shattered, and, without thinking, the words slipped out: “I don’t know Him!” Three times in a row.

It’s probably just human. We react that way too. When we’re pushed into a corner, when our defence mechanism kicks in, we turn to our human origins and choose the route of least resistance.

Most of the time, it’s the mistakes and wrong choices that linger in people’s minds. When my former teachers hear my name, all the pranks I pulled and all the times I bunked school come to mind. It formed their picture of me.

It’s probably the same when I think of Peter. The image that first comes to my mind is the rooster crowing. And yet Jesus gave Peter a new name, which means rock. His birth name was Simon.

Jesus no longer saw Peter’s wrong choice. He didn’t see his wobbly legs that resorted to his default in times of need. He actually saw him as the man Jesus wanted to build His church.

For the following months, this Peter will help us to walk through life as true children of the Lord. We will study the two letters he wrote to all the new Christians, wherever they were in the world.

An ordinary fisherman with no theological training. A man who was usually quick out of the blocks and wasn’t afraid to call a spade a spade. The man with the feet of clay who, in the end, became the rock.

Yes, from the beginning, Jesus saw Simon Peter as the rock on which the church would be built.

It gives me hope. God used a guy who may have been the leader of His team of 12 here on earth, whom He saw as the rock on which His church would be built, yet this man would one day deny Him.

This is how God can and wants to use me too. Maybe not to write a book in the Bible; in any case, the canon is fixed. Even less does God want to use me to be the rock on which His church is built, because it is already built.

But God wants to use you and me, no matter how stupid our choices are. No matter how crooked our sticks are, God wants to use us right where we are. May we all push aside our poor self-esteem or our feelings of guilt today and know and believe God can and wants to use us.

¹I, Peter, am an apostle on assignment by Jesus, the Messiah, writing to exiles scattered to the four winds.

Scripture
1 Peter 1:1-2

Reflection
What are you learning from Peter?
Do you believe that God is calling you to make a difference too?
Where?

Prayer
Father, sometimes I don’t feel good enough to do anything for You. Yet I know that You use all people, no matter their background or what they’ve done or not done. Here I am. Use me too, Lord. Amen.