Piece by Piece

In our culture it isn’t unlikely to hear of absent fathers or to have experienced it first hand. It’s not uncommon to hear that most people live without a dad or if they have one they were less than ideal. Even though our circumstances may be different it is something that we all see on a day to day basis.

"It is estimated that 24.7 million children live absent their biological father”, in recent events Kelly Clarkson performed a song that made us feel those numbers in our homes across America. Her song "Piece by Piece" begins like this… 

"And all I remember is your back,

walking toward the airport, leaving us all in your past.

I traveled 1500 miles to see you,

begged you to want me, but you didn’t want to."

Too many of us experience that feeling of abandonment, it’s not uncommon for us to be able to relate to those lyrics, even if we were fortunate enough not to be one of those 24.7 million children, even if  our fathers were all that they should be to us, we know what it feels like to feel alone. 

As a women who lost her father to sickness at the age of 11, I understand that feeling all too well, even though in my case it wasn’t his choice to leave, I struggled most of my childhood feeling unwanted. I mean after all if the statistics are right, to a little girl her dad is her first love. The one who models the way we allow ourselves to be loved by other men in the future.   

To young men the role is just as important, a father is the role model of life, how they are expected to perform as men, husbands and fathers, they are the ones who give approval and acceptance.

They are in essence the foundation of how we treat the relationships we have for the rest of our lives, being a dad is a really important task but we live in a world that is broken, a world where people leave, a world where people are hurt and abused by the ones who are meant to protect them. 

Amazingly, further on in her song she tell us there is hope, she continues with.. 

"But piece by piece, he collected me,

up off the ground, where you abandon things.

Piece by piece he filled the holes that you burned in me 

at six years old and you know, he never walks away

He never asks for money, he takes care of me

He loves me

Piece by piece, he restored my faith 

that a man can be kind and a father could… stay."

You see, no matter where we are, whether we have been abandoned by our fathers, or lost them to illness, whether we have had a difficult relationship with them or have no relationship at all, if we see them all the time or have no clue what they look like.

We all have someone who is willing to step into those shoes for us, someone who will be there for us, someone who will never forsake us. Even though this world has taken too much from us and asked way too much of us we have someone who is offering to give it back and the only thing He asks of us in return is our faith and trust in Him. 

John 1:12 says 

"But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God."

He gave us the “right to become children of God.”, I don’t know about you but that gives me relief, I no longer have to worry about being fatherless because no matter what HE is my father. 

Galatians 3:26 tell us "For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus”

Through Jesus we have the ability to live our lives with the best of role models, someone who never falters, never fails to come through for us, someone who is always consistent and never changing. 

Numbers 23:19a

“ God is not a man, so he does not lie.

    He is not human, so he does not change his mind…"

Once we are His we are always His, something this world and the people of it can never promise us!

Piece by piece He promises to make us something new “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” 2 Corinthians 5:17, to pick us up from where we are and give us hope ”And so at last the poor have hope,and the snapping jaws of the wicked are shut” Job 5:16 , he promises to heal our broken hearts and the scares that we are all too familiar with “He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds” Psalm 147:3, He promises to be more to us than what we had and way more than we deserve!

**Written by Jessica Evans**

Who is God Calling You To Be?

After the crucifixion of Jesus the bible tells us that many of the disciples seemed to have lost hope and returned to the lives they had left behind. It's arguable that Peter had felt the worst after His death, I mean after all Peter had denied his walk with Jesus not once but three times! Even after being told of this betrayal hours before, in Peter's guilt ridden mind there was no other option but go back! Back to the life he had left, back to fishing. Mark's gospel tells us Jesus sent word to His disciples of His resurrection verse 7 says,   

   "But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.'"

    In this passage something stands out! "Go, tell his disciples and Peter," Why Peter, out of all the others who walked with Jesus, why single Peter out? I believe it was because Jesus knew that Peter felt unworthy, I believe He knew that Peter felt immense regret for the moments following his denial. I also believe He knew that Peter desperately needed to know the Messiah still loved him and still considered him His! 

    That is why I believe this remarkable encounter took place,  John 21:15-17  

    When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”

    “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

    Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

                                              He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

     Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

     The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

     Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you                       know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.”

     Notice how Jesus begins, "Simon son of John", as if saying, I know who you truly are! I knew you

when you were just Simon the son of John and I know that you feel a lot like the person WE left behind. See, Jesus came along and changed not only Peter's name but the person that name was attached to. When Peter denied Jesus, Peter wondered if he had ever truly been changed in the first place,  it's obvious Jesus knew what Peter was feeling! 

     All three times Jesus begins by acknowledging the person Peter feels like and all three times He asks the same question, essentially saying Peter I know you feel unworthy, you feel like Simon, but "do you love me, do you love me, do you love me?" It's interesting that Jesus chose to ask this question THREE times, allowing Peter to see that every time he denied Him was made new. Not because Jesus NEEDED to be apologized to but because He knew that Peter needed to see that Jesus still loved him despite his denial.  

     All too often we tend to be just like Peter, we walk this amazing walk with Jesus and like the transformation from Simon to Peter we begin to change the way we think and act, we begin to see ourselves becoming more like Christ and then... BOOM! Something happens and we begin to question if the walk we were walking was actually what we thought it was, it becomes unclear to us if the changes we thought were happening were legit or if God was truly changing us at all! So instead of dealing with guilt for the mistakes we made we turn back to the old life we left, becoming the person we were before Jesus changed our names.

     Jesus began a good work in Peter the same as He has begun a good work in us! Unfortunately, there are going to be days that what comes out of us is going to make us question what's inside of us and that's understandable! So we need to cut ourselves some slack and remember who Jesus is! Just like He asked Peter once for every mistake he made, He WILL give us forgiveness and redemption for every mistake we make and yes, even the ones we consider the worst! I am confident that He has began a good work in us and He WILL finish it just like He did for Peter! 

Philippians 1:6 

"being confident of this, he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."

**Written by Jessica Evans**