March 5, 2012

Mark 8:32-33 But Peter grabbed him in protest. Turning and seeing his disciples wavering, wondering what to believe, Jesus confronted Peter. “Peter, get out of my way! Satan, get lost! You have no idea how God works.” (The Message Bible)

This is a chilling moment for all of us who want to follow Jesus. He has just finished telling his followers that he is heading to rejection, suffering and death before his resurrection and Peter, probably with the best of intentions, is having none of it. I can hear Peter now saying, “Come on Jesus, we would never let that happen to you. More importantly, God would never let that happen to you!” But God would and did and Peter was not able to stop it, nor should he. In that moment Peter, again probably with the best of intentions, allied himself with evil by resisting what Jesus was clearly saying had to happen. How often do we want to tell God how to run things? How often do we want to tell God how to succeed in this or that endeavor? How often do we react to God as if we know what is best and then get discouraged and angry when we find this isn’t what God has in mind at all. In Lent we are asked to embrace rejection, suffering and death so that we can experience resurrection. It sounds crazy. Will we accept that we “have no idea how God works” so much of the time and trust anyway? Or will we continue to try to impose our will on God and God’s world? What is happening in your life this week? How can you trust it to God’s care?

Don