When You Fail Publicly

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A powerful man in Washington, D. C. goes from the

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inner circle of the White House to a prison cell with his name

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splashed across every headline. Chuck Colson was President

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Nixon's hatchet man during Watergate, known for

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bare-knuckle politics, until he pled guilty to obstruction of

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justice and went to federal prison in disgrace. Overnight,

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the man who once walked the West Wing was wearing an inmate

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number. When your failure is that public and that humiliating,

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why would you believe God still has any calling left for you?

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Welcome to Daily Devotions for Busy Lives. I'm Bart Leger. Have

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you ever had a moment when you blew it in a way you can't hide?

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When you failed publicly? When your name, your reputation,

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maybe even your ministry or career feels marked by what you

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did wrong? In John 21, after the resurrection, we're told,

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breakfast, Jesus asked Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, do

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you love me more than these? Yes, Lord, Peter replied. You know I

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love you. Then feed my lambs, Jesus told him. Jesus repeated

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the question. Simon, son of John, do you love me? Yes, Lord, Peter

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said. You know I love you. Then, take care of my sheep, Jesus

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said. A third time, he asked him. Simon, son of John, do you love

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me? Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time.

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He said, Lord, you know everything. You know that I love

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you. Jesus said, Then feed my sheep. To feel the weight of

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that moment, you have to remember what happened a few

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days earlier. Peter was the disciple who said, Lord, I'll

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die with you. I'll never deny you. And then, when the pressure

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hit, he denied even knowing Jesus three different times.

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Loudly, very publicly, within earshot of people who knew him.

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Luke tells us that after the third denial, the rooster crowed,

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and Jesus turned and looked straight at Peter. Peter then

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went outside and wept bitterly. He knew he had failed, not in

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private, but in front of others, and worst of all, in front of

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Jesus himself. Maybe you know that feeling in your own way.

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Your failure might not have been on the news, but it was public

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enough. People at church know. Your family knows. Your

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co-workers know. Maybe it was a moral failure, an affair, an

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addiction that came to light, or maybe a meltdown at work, or

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something you said, something you said online that hurt people,

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and you wish you could rewrite the scene, but you can't. And

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there's a voice whispering, Well, that's it. God can forgive you,

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maybe, but he's certainly done using you. John 21 shows us a

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different story. Jesus doesn't hold a press conference to shame

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Peter. He cooks him breakfast on a beach. He doesn't pretend that

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nothing happened either. He goes straight to the sore spot, not

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to crush him, but to heal Peter. Three times Peter denied Jesus.

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Three times Jesus asks, Do you love me? It's not because he

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didn't know the answer. It's because he's walking Peter back

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through his failure and rewriting it with grace. Each

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time Peter says, You know I love you. Jesus doesn't say, Prove it

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by never failing again. He says, Then feed my lambs. Take care of

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my sheep. Feed my sheep. In other words, Peter, I'm not only

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forgiving you, I'm recommissioning you. I still

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trust you with my people. Your calling is not canceled. That's

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the heart of Jesus toward repentant failures. He doesn't

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minimize sin, and he doesn't erase consequences, but he also

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doesn't throw people away. Chuck Colson knows that feeling.

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Instead of hiding from his past, he met Jesus in the middle of it

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and began leading Bible studies behind bars. After his release,

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the man who had become a symbol of corruption founded Prison

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Fellowship, which grew into the largest prison ministry in the

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world, serving inmates, families, and wardens in Jesus' name.

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Colson never denied his sin. He just refused to believe it was

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the end of his story. Like Peter on that beach in John 21, he

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discovered that Jesus doesn't just forgive failures, he

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recommissions them. Your worst chapter doesn't cancel your

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calling. In God's hands, it can become the very place he uses

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you most. I don't know what your public failure has been, or how

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many people know about it, but I do know this. If you belong to

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Jesus, your worst moment is not the final word of your life. The

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cross already has that job. The question Jesus asked Peter is

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the same question he asks you. Do you love me? Not, did you get

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it all right? Not, can you promise you'll never stumble

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again? But, do you love me? If the answer from a broken but

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honest heart is, yes, Lord, you know I love you, then there is

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still a feed my sheep attached to your name. Your calling might

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look different now. It might be quieter, humbler, more aware of

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your weaknesses, but often God uses that very humility and

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experience of failure to make you more compassionate, more

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real, more open, and more effective in caring for others.

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Here's today's challenge. Think of one failure that still makes

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you wince, especially if others know about it, and bring it

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honestly to Jesus. In prayer, picture yourself on that beach

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with him. Hear him ask, Do you love me? And answer him honestly.

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Then ask, Lord, in light of all this, how do you want to use me

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now? What feed my sheep looks like for me in this season? You

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may not get a lightning bolt answer, but stay open. His

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restoring work often starts right there. you know our worst

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moments and our public failures better than anyone, and yet you

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still invite us close. Thank you for how you restored Peter and

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for how you restored people like Chuck Colson. For the people

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listening who feel disqualified, would you whisper hope again?

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Help them hear your question. Do you love me? And believe that.

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In your hands, their story isn't over. In Jesus' name, amen. If

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this episode has encouraged you, would you consider sharing it

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with someone who feels like their failure has put them on

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the shelf? Just send them the link in the show notes. They may

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need this reminder today. Thanks for joining me today on Daily

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Devotions for Busy Lives. up big time doesn't mean God is done

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with you. In Christ, your worst chapter doesn't cancel your

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calling. Come back next time for more encouragement to help you

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live grounded in God's truth. Until then, God bless and have a

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great day.