piercing hearts.

i'm a peter fan.

peter pan yes, but that's not the peter i'm talking about. 

i'm talking about this peter:

peter replied, "even if all fall away on account of you, i never will."

"truly i tell you," Jesus answered, "this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times."

but peter declared, "even if i have to die with you, i will never disown you."

matthew 26:33-34

and then we all know how the story goes.
three times peter denies the Lord (see matthew 26:69-74).

vs 75: immediately a rooster crowed. then peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: "before the rooster crows you will disown me three times." and he went outside and wept bitterly. 

i cry.
all the time.
at sad things. at happy things. at songs. at dogs. at commercials about dogs. at babies. at tiny human beings singing songs.
i. am. a. cryer.

i can relate to peter on this one.

he felt disappointed.
he knew what he did was wrong, oh so very wrong. it did nothing to further the Kingdom, nothing to bring glory to the name of Jesus. but he did it anyways.
three times.

i've made a lot of mistakes in my short time here on earth. and i know i'll make more.
growing up, and before i really found who i was in Christ, i made the same mistakes over and over and over again.

they call that insanity right?

each time i knew what i did was wrong, but still did it again when the opportunity presented itself.
anyone else like that?

i spent a lot of time in high school and before i met the hubsters in tears. weeping. about mistakes i made. ones that i knew were so far off from what i believed in, and knew what was right. but i made them anyways.

which is why i find so much hope in peters story.

if you fast forward to after the resurection. we find peter again in acts.

and you don't even get two chapters in before the really good stuff hits.

peter is preaching. and not just preaching but bringing the Word hard core for the first time in the new testament (not including Jesus, duh). he's preaching boldly about what we as christ follower are to do. how life is supposed to go. it's simple and straight forward.

i was reading this yesterday morning and then hit this verse:

when the people heard this, they were 

cut to the heart 

and said to peter and the other apostles, 

"brothers, what shall we do?"

(acts 2:37)

his words cut to their hearts.
the new living translation says, peters words pierced their hearts.

the gospel and good news that he preached and the words he used pierced peoples hearts.

this same man that had just denied Jesus three times was now piercing peoples hearts with words of glory.

what happened in my life five years ago, doesn't matter.
this is where that beautiful thing, that i'll never understand, called grace comes into play.

His death on the cross was not in vein. it washed those sins of mine...and peters away.

and now, there's nothing holding me back from piercing people with my words about Jesus.

peter is inspiration to me.
i've talked on this blog a lot about the weight of words. how heavy they can be.
but the words about the gospel? those need to be heavy. weighed down with the love of a Savior.

able to cut and pierce hearts.

i am thankful for a Word that brings me stories like this one.
i'm hopeful that God will indeed use me like he used peter.
just a messed up person, drowning in grace.