That Was Then, This Is Now
Reading: 2 Corinthians 5:17 (the truth that anyone in Christ is a new creation, and that the old has passed away) and Acts 3:12-16 (Peter boldly declaring the resurrection of Jesus before the very crowd that watched him fall)
Devotional: The same man who whispered by a fire that he did not know Jesus stood in Solomon's Colonnade and declared the resurrection with boldness. Peter did not become a different person. He became a restored one. God did not erase his past. He redeemed it. The failure Peter carried became the very thing that gave his message weight. He knew what it meant to fall, and he knew what it meant to be found. That is your testimony too. Grace does not just forgive the mess. It turns the mess into a mission. What happened before does not have to determine what comes next. That was then. This is now.
Reflection Question: How might God want to use your past failures or seasons of doubt as part of the testimony He is building through your life?
Practical Application: Share with one trusted person this week something God has brought you through. Let your story of restoration be an encouragement to someone who may still be sitting by the fire, wondering if they can come home.
Devotional: The same man who whispered by a fire that he did not know Jesus stood in Solomon's Colonnade and declared the resurrection with boldness. Peter did not become a different person. He became a restored one. God did not erase his past. He redeemed it. The failure Peter carried became the very thing that gave his message weight. He knew what it meant to fall, and he knew what it meant to be found. That is your testimony too. Grace does not just forgive the mess. It turns the mess into a mission. What happened before does not have to determine what comes next. That was then. This is now.
Reflection Question: How might God want to use your past failures or seasons of doubt as part of the testimony He is building through your life?
Practical Application: Share with one trusted person this week something God has brought you through. Let your story of restoration be an encouragement to someone who may still be sitting by the fire, wondering if they can come home.
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