Peter

I was recently preparing my next lesson for my discipleship group of young girls. Our topic for this lesson was “Discovering Your Gifts and Talents.” I want to help these girls know who they are in Christ and recognize the gifts and talents He has given them. I thought I would share some of my thoughts here as well.

I used many Bible characters in my lesson, but one of my favorites is Peter. When they came to arrest Jesus, Peter cut off the ear of Malchus, but Jesus reached out and restored the ear.

Then there was the time that Jesus came walking on the water. Peter jumped out of the boat and started walking to Jesus. All was well until Peter looked around and saw the waves and began to sink. Jesus reached down and rescued him. But before we judge him too harshly, let’s remember that he was the only one who got out of the boat to walk on the water!

We all remember how Peter denied Jesus three times after he said he would never deny Jesus. And yet with all the messes and mistakes, on the Day of Pentecost, God used Peter to speak and 3,000 were added to the Kingdom that day. Peter truly had the “gift of evangelism”!

I think all of us can relate to Peter. We may mess up from time to time, but God can still use our gifts for His glory! Let’s keep our focus on Jesus! And let’s not be afraid to jump out of the boat!