Daily Reflection

“[Jesus] said to [Peter] the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt because [Jesus] said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ And [Peter] said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep.’ … After this [Jesus] said to [Peter], ‘Follow me.’”

How encouraging! As noted by Karen Stiller in Holiness Here, “Peter would have felt the grief of his betrayal and the loss of Jesus as a physical pain” (p 72). But now (though Jesus addresses him as “Simon son of John” as he’s not yet the rock of the name Jesus gave him), Peter’s triple denial of Jesus after his arrest is expunged with a triple declaration of his love for Jesus. Peter is forgiven and restored as a disciple again, now given the task of shepherding Jesus’ disciples while keeping his gaze on the Shepherd. There’s hope for all of us despite what faltering we have done, and a task for us in God’s mission, now broken open for all the beloved world.

Pursue us, our Shepherd and Lord. Find us, especially when we are doing useless things. Forgive us when we deny You. Help us to forgive ourselves and to take up what You need us to do. Amen

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Daily Reflection

Sunday, May 4, 2025