And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, to strengthen your brethren.”

But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you, both to prison and to death.”  — Luke 22:32-33

It is crazy to think that the apostle Peter almost quit.  He boasted in the above verse that he was ready to be imprisoned and even to die for Jesus, but about 30 verses later, within the same chapter, he is telling people that he doesn’t even know who Jesus is.  Peter was seriously wounded, and Satan preys on the wounded.

I’ve encountered a lot of people lately who have been wounded.  Some family member or members who should have been trustworthy, or some person or group within the church really hurt the people I’ve been witnessing to, and it has shipwrecked their faith.  The worst part is that they are allowing these wounds to keep them from moving forward in their faith.  In many cases, they want nothing to do with church, the Bible, God, or anything spiritual anymore.  What if Simon/Peter would have done the same?

I can think of a few times that my wounds almost shipwrecked my faith.  When three of the best churches I’ve ever been part of had adultery, strife, and dissention tear them apart, I was wounded.  When my wife miscarried twice, I almost allowed that wound to allow me to quit.  When I went from perfectly ignorant to understanding the behind the scenes of church leadership . . . it almost destroyed my faith.  Satan desired to sift me as wheat!  He desired to keep me from moving forward in my faith.  From my little puny human perspective, it almost worked.  From God’s perspective, I imagine that He knows that He had me all along.  The Lord alone is the author and finisher of our faith and not we ourselves.

I believe the Lord is healing me of a lot right now.  I think I’ve got wounds that I’m not even fully aware of how or when they happened.  They’ve made me cynical, which is the last thing I want to be.  They make me judgmental, which the Word of God commands me not to be.  Worst of all, they steal my joy . . . which I refuse to give up.

I’m sure we all have an excuse to be however we want to be, but we are talking about literally the greatest thing that exists on this planet:  Forgiveness for our sins, a new and abundant life in Christ, and an eternal home in heaven.  

Lord, heal my wounds.  The scars will remain just as Yours do to this day, but they will only remind me that my God is the great healer.  I love You, Lord.  Strengthen my faith.  Help me to help those who have given up.  Help me to do as You did and pray for them.  May all of us who follow You truly help others dust themselves off and bandage wounds so they can begin to heal.  May those who have ever believed in You and truly placed their trust in You remain in You until that glorious day when our faith becomes sight.  We need You like never before.  Amen.