Lenten Devotion for Thursday, March 13

By Michael Hansen

Read John 18:24-27

Growing up, my brother and I were quite messy. We liked to play but never to clean up after ourselves. This applied especially to our rooms. Some days mom told us to clean our rooms before we could go outside or play with friends.

Fortunately, my big brother always came up with the best plan. He used to say “Mike, help me clean up my room, and then I will help you clean yours!” To which I would skeptically reply, “Promise?” And he would assure me, “Promise!”

But every time we would be done cleaning his room, something came up and he had to go immediately. He broke his promise and made me clean both our rooms because he had something better to do.

Simon Peter had promised Jesus that he would follow Him even to prison and death. But as soon as he was identified as one of Christ’s disciples, he denied Him to avoid exactly that kind of persecution. He broke his word because he could not handle the consequences.

We often find ourselves making promises to God that we don’t keep. We constantly pray “God, please help me with __________”, or “God, please give me __________ and I promise I will change and only act according to Your will”–only to pray the same thing the next week and the week after.

Even though Jesus knows that we will break our promises to Him before we even make them, He always keeps His. He is faithful to us and promises us eternal life. When we fail, God reaches out to us with new mercy every day.

We pray: Jesus, we often break our promises and let You down. Forgive us. Thank You for being so faithful to us by renewing us and keeping Your promise to us. Amen.

Family discussion:

People make empty promises to God all the time, but He always ends up being the one keeping His. What are some instances in your life where God has kept His promises to you?

Everyday object:

Wedding rings. Mom and Dad promised each other that they would always love each other and be together. But what if Mom and Dad took their wedding rings off as soon as someone asked if they were married? They would never do that!

Just like Mom and Dad are proud to be married to each other and are always wearing their rings for people to see, we should be proud to follow Jesus and show everyone how great He is!