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330. Your Story

Key Verse:  Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?  You must follow Me."
John 21:22

C. S. Lewis' series of children's books known as the Chronicles of Narnia, are meant to help all of us understand in a fresh way how God involves Himself with His children.  The books tell of some children who leave this world temporarily to have adventures in a different world known as, Narnia, in which they meet a Lion named Aslan, who represents the Christ figure.  Aslan guides them through these adventures, sometimes directly and sometimes not.  Sometimes the children follow obediently and sometimes they fail.  The children learn early, in their dealings with Aslan that there are two questions that he will not answer.  One question is, "What if?" and the other is, "What about the other person?"  When the children have to face the consequences of their own decisions, they will often ask, "what about the other person?  What is going to happen to him or her?" to which Aslan always responds, "Child, I'm telling you your story."

That, I believe, is what is happening here with Peter and John.  I believe that Peter has grasped the seriousness of the responsibility that Jesus is placing on his shoulders.  Probably, Jesus had drawn off Peter privately to have this conversation concerning his commissioning that we have been thinking about for the past two days.  Now, Peter looks round, sees John trailing behind and wants to know, "What about him?  What is his task?"  Jesus responds basically as Aslan, "Peter, I'm telling you your story.  Never mind about John.  You do what I have charged you to do and leave John to me."

No two walks are alike.  In Isaiah, we read about all the different crops and how a good farmer knows how to treat each one differently to benefit from what it has to offer.  Some crops produce grain while others are spices.  Some seeds are treated gently while others need to be ground under a cartwheel to expose the meat.  I suppose the wheat could complain, "Why am I treated so roughly?  Why can't I be treated more like the cumin?"  The farmer knows why.  They are different, for different purposes.  If the wheat was not ground the bread would be practically uneatable and cumin could be ruined if the reverse were true.

Jesus warns Peter not to compare, but to live out the purpose to which he has been called.  If John had asked a similar question, I'm sure that Jesus would have responded in the same way.
Paul says it this way:  "There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.  There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.  There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men."  (1 Cor. 12:4-6)  He then moves on to explain how, we are one body with many different parts and gifts that must be treated differently as our calling and giftedness requires.

John's calling was to serve Jesus in a different way than Peter, but the task and result would be the same, to glorify God and win the world to Christ.  It is the same with us today.  Some of us sing, others write.  Some have money, others are called to missions oversees.  Some of us are called to singleness while others are called to marry and produce families.  Even in this, some have biological children while others adopt and still others open their homes to do foster care.  We are all different, and our Heavenly Father knows what is needed to bring the best of ourselves to Him for His glory.  

Don't focus on why your walk doesn't look like that of someone whom you believe to be more fortunate than yourself.  Don't wonder why someone else isn't growing as fast or producing as much fruit as you.  "Child, God is telling you your story.”  He is working on you.  Focus on the job that He has assigned you and leave others to Him, trusting that He is doing the same with them as you, doing what it takes to make all of us shine with His glory.


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