Jesus knew Peter would deny Him, but He still called him to be His disciple, saying: ‘Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren’ (vv. 31-32). The mistakes we make and the messes we create often don’t happen by accident but because of choices we’ve made. But that doesn’t mean they put us beyond the reach of God’s grace. The secret of victory is to let God use our mistakes to develop us rather than let Satan use them to destroy us. Pay attention to the words ‘Satan hath desired to have you’. Satan wants to take back what he lost – you. When you doubt God’s grace and love, Satan has the power to bring you down. Have you ever seen wheat going through a threshing process? It’s not a pretty sight. And when it happens in your life, it doesn’t feel good. If Peter, one of Christ’s handpicked disciples, could fail, how much more likely is it to happen to us? And when it does, what do you think the Lord wants to accomplish through it? Today, your life might look like it’s in a mess, but if you turn to God, He can make something beautiful out of it. And here’s one last thought: Jesus told Peter, ‘I have prayed for thee.’ Today, Jesus is praying for you. ‘If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous’ (1 John 2:1 KJV). So, if you have fallen, Jesus will lift you up and restore you.
