Peter denied Jesus just before His death. If Jesus were anyone else and not the Son of God, I’m sure it would have been the end of a relationship, a revocation of his calling, and two hurt people. That’s what Peter deserved: to lose Jesus’ love, lose the purpose Jesus instilled in him, and to live with his failure. It’s what you and I deserve for sure. Because we’ve all done what Peter did. Maybe not under the same circumstances, but we’ve all fallen short. We’ve all messed up. We’ve all had moments of weak faith that caused us to be less confident in our belief.

This week, let’s continue on into the following verses, which are deep with vivid imagery. The Lord is our shepherd. He makes us lie down in green pastures, He leads us beside still waters. He refreshes us and leads us along paths of righteousness. When I was a kid, memorizing these verses, I pictured my Papa’s house in the mountains of New York. His house was at the top of a hill, surrounded by woods, and at the bottom of the hill was a little stream and an apple grove. Everything about it was green and beautiful to my childhood imagination.

I’ve always had a lot of respect for John the Baptist. Here’s a guy, who lived primarily in the wilderness, whose entire ministry was to make people ready for someone else to come. That takes a truly selfless and purpose-driven person. And to me, in many ways, John the Baptist’s ministry is the ministry we all share today: to make people ready for Jesus. And the way people try to reach the lost these days– social media, Youtube, and church platforms that look more like a concert venue than a place of worship– it’s easy to get caught up in self-promotion dressed as God-driven purpose. And it’s proven, social media has an addictive quality, so what might start out as an account totally dedicated to sharing the Gospel and God’s love can totally become a source of self gratification when you see the likes and follows start rolling in.

I don’t like really talking politics on Soul Deep. I never want to use this site as a manipulation tool or a soapbox. From its founding, I wanted to build a site and a ministry that pushed people towards Jesus and revealed deep truths about Him. I pray that I have used my very small platform to help you see more of God’s character and His love for you. I pray that I’ve never come across as a teacher that pushes her own agenda over the God-breathed word. I would never want my own political ideology to come through stronger than the standard of God’s heart.

So let me give you the short version of what my life has been for the past 7 months: I’ve planned two weddings, and I still need to plan one more. The first wedding was the one that never happened; at a catering hall that essentially took our money and never provided a wedding due to COVID-19. Then there’s the wedding that did take place: a beautiful and intimate ceremony under a tree at the top of a hill that felt like another planet altogether, surrounded by family– followed by an awesome backyard reception that was more perfect than any catering hall could have attempted to create.

I like to think of myself as a problem solver. When I see something that’s not working, I get in there, try and figure out the best possible solution, and make things happen as best I can to correct the issue. Many times, because it’s a part of my personality to constantly try and think up creative projects to get into, I often find myself as the girl holding a lot of the information and coordinating a lot of people.

‬‬Dear God, As we go into this new year, I pray you give us a newfound hope and motivation to live for you in all we do. I pray that we would recognize your grace in our lives everyday and there would be no moment we would take you for granted. Let this be the year that our love runs deeper for you and our compassion rises towards the hurting people around us. God, I pray you show us your purpose for us in this new year as we face it head on with all we have.

Look, no one likes to fail. And as a self-proclaimed overachiever and perfectionist, I super-duper HATE failing. Just this past week, I had a really, really big and difficult licensing test. It was something I have been studying for over the past 9 weeks. So last Tuesday, while everyone was opening their Soul Deep devotion and sipping on their morning coffee, I was sitting in a small cubicle, laboring over 150 multiple choice questions.

Comparison: it’s something I struggled with BIG TIME in the early days of my relationship with Christ and the beginning of my ministry. “I don’t worship like so-and-so. How could God be calling me to be a worship leader?” “I don’t have the experience in youth ministry that he has, so I won’t be as useful in reaching them.” “I’m not as bold as her, so I’ll just stay back and let her tell those people about Jesus. She’ll be better at it anyway”

We are back in Romans this week and I’m so excited to keep examining what God is trying to speak to us through this series. In the past two devotionals I’ve done in Romans, we have focused on the hope we have in Jesus and the limitless grace we have received through our salvation.

Yes, I’m still on my Isaiah 43 kick. I just can’t help it. Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve just been sitting in it and really searching it. The things that the Lord has been teaching me and showing me have been so precious and refreshing to my heart. Basically, the whole chapter is God proving Himself and reminding Israel who He is– reminding His people of their worth, reminding His people of how much He loves them, reminding them of His absolute and sovereign power, and reminding them of what He’s done in the past in the name of that love.

God left us with a mission. In our key verse, we see that He left Paul with the same mission: to be His hands and feet on this earth– to spread the truth of the gospel across the nations so that every ear would hear the wondrous name of Jesus. Our call and Paul’s call are one and the same. If we continue to experience God and draw close to Him, our compassion for others and confidence to tell them about Jesus should continuously grow.

I remember stepping out to center stage in my high school auditorium, lights in my eyes, and every chair empty but three. I was a bright-eyed freshman who wanted nothing more than to make the student-run spring musical. I thought it was a big deal because, unlike the faculty-supervised winter musical, not everyone that auditioned made it. Only the best made that coveted cast list, and I had been practicing for days to make sure that my name was on it, no matter the part.