The name failure wrote over you
Dear friend.
Have you ever felt like a lesser version of yourself - not dramatically, not overnight, but quietly, as if something had slowly let the air out?
Maybe it was a mistake you made that you still carry. A conversation that left you feeling smaller than when it started. A failure at work, at home, or at church that made you wonder whether the person you thought you were was actually the person you are.
That’s what shame does. It gives us names we never chose. And bit by bit, we stop stepping into the room as our full selves.
I’ve been thinking a lot about Peter this week.
In John 21, it’s after Easter. The disciples have gone back to fishing - back to the old life. And Peter, who promised to die for Jesus and then denied him three times, has every reason to feel small. Then Jesus appears on the shore. And he doesn’t call him Peter the Rock. He says, “Simon, son of John.” The old name. The before-name.
It sounds tender - and it is. But I think something deeper is happening too. Jesus is meeting Peter exactly where failure had put him. Not to leave him there. But because that’s where the conversation about forgiveness had to begin.
And then there’s this extraordinary verse - Revelation 2:17. Jesus promises a white stone with a new name, known only to the one who receives it. In the ancient world, a white stone meant acquittal. Not guilty. You are free.
Your true name is already written. Failure hasn’t touched it. You just have to come out of hiding to receive it.
That’s what today’s devotional is about. It’s five minutes, and it ends with a prayer and one small, honest step.
Watch it here →
With you on the journey.
Rob
Read this week’s devotionals here - https://open.substack.com/pub/battledrilldevotional/p/have-you-ever-felt-like-youve-blown?r=643q6o&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true