In the shadow of His wings: DAR, final day

Day 5 was really just a few hours of saying goodbyes and discussing moving on and how to be better servants.

Our final devotion was just as powerful as the others that we had done each morning, reading about Peter's betrayal of Christ. Peter was so proud of his relationship to Christ and swore that he would never, couldn't possibly EVER deny Christ. And yet He did. He failed and then followed and watched as His Savior was beaten, rejected, shamed, cursed at, vilified, and finally, crucified. Think about how Peter must have felt, how he must have despised and loathed himself.

But thankfully, that's not the end of Peter's story. He became one of the most important people in the history of the church, going on to a great and powerful ministry.

Have you ever thought of what kind of ministry Peter might have had if he hadn't failed and fallen down and had to go through trememdous shame and rejection? Instead of being, "Peter, the Rock on which I will build my church," he might have been, "Peter, the Proud." If he hadn't experienced brokenness and learned to serve out of it, what kind of leader would he have been?

Our leader's challenge to us was to learn to serve out of the brokenness that we have experienced in ministry and to use it for God's greater good. I've heard it over and over again now, "A broken missionary makes a better missionary. I pray that you never have to serve alongside of or under a leader who hasn't wept bitter tears, because that person will only know how to serve out of pride and self-worth. Once a person has been broken and then healed, he becomes a much more powerful tool for Christ."

I'm thankful for the breaking that God has allowed in my life and pray that in His time, He will use it to bless and encourage others. I pray for my continued healing and for the healing of others who have served faithfully and who continue to serve faithfully. It was a blessing to me to sit in a room of broken people without any pretensions. But not only was it a room of broken, non-pretentious people, it was a room almost entirely free of bitterness- which was a tremendous thing to see. Broken, bitterfree people, looking for continued healing and looking to continue in service to their great and mighty God. What a testimony to His goodness, faithfulness and love!