“And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates
of Hades will not overcome it”
Matthew 16:18
How you feel or what others say about you is not important. You are who God says you are; He sees in you more than you can possibly imagine. Your potential is limited only by God, not others.
Coward or Warrior?
God came to a frightened young man named Gideon. Gideon obviously thought God was talking to someone else when the angel of the Lord called him a mighty warrior (Judges 6:12). The angel didn’t say, “Oh, coward. Do you know you have strength?” Nor did the angel say, “Oh black man, do you know that you can be like the white man?” The angel just came in and announced what he saw: “Oh mighty man of war power.” That means “Oh great warrior.”
Think about it. Warrior? Gideon was hiding from the enemy trying to separate some wheat from the chaff so he wouldn’t starve. He was doing it underground so no one could see him. When the angel said, “You are a brave man,” Gideon started looking around to see whom the angel was talking to.
God never tells us what others see. He never calls us what others call us. Gideon thought he was a coward. God knew him to be a great warrior and pronounced what He saw.
Flaky, Flaky.
God also saw in Peter what others failed to see. His given name was Simon, which means meek. (Literally it means “unstable, flaky, leaf.”) When Jesus met Simon, he was the flakiest, leafiest man you ever met. He was always going with the wind—changing his mind. But God saw a stone in the leaf. The first time Jesus met Peter, He changed Peter’s name from Simon (leaf) to Peter (stone). Although Simon was an unstable guy, Jesus said, “I’m going to change your name. Your name is Peter.” Peter acted like a leaf throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry. Still Jesus called him rock every morning. Jesus saw in Peter something his mother had not seen. He kept chipping until finally, at Pentecost, Peter’s true nature was revealed
You are who God says you are: He sees in you more than you can possibly imagine
