FEBRUARY 12, 2026

 “Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.” 

― Kahlil Gibran

LEVITICUS 14

21“If, however, they are poor and cannot afford these, they must take one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved to make atonement for them, together with a tenth of an ephah^e of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering, a log of oil, 22and two doves or two young pigeons, such as they can afford, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering.(14:21-22)

MATTHEW 26:55-75

55In that hour Jesus said to the crowd, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I sat in the temple courts teaching, and you did not arrest me. 56But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.

57Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. 58But Peter followed him at a distance, right up to the courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see the outcome.

59The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. 60But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward.

Finally two came forward 61and declared, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’ ”

62Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” 63But Jesus remained silent.

The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

64“You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”^e

65Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. 66What do you think?”

“He is worthy of death,” they answered.

67Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him 68and said, “Prophesy to us, Messiah. Who hit you?”

69Now Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came to him. “You also were with Jesus of Galilee,” she said.

70But he denied it before them all. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.

71Then he went out to the gateway, where another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

72He denied it again, with an oath: “I don’t know the man!”

73After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, “Surely you are one of them; your accent gives you away.”

74Then he began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know the man!”

Immediately a rooster crowed. 75Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.

JOURNAL 

The purpose of our lives is not to manage outcomes or secure tomorrow. It is to live fully in the moment we are given. To live it attentively, faithfully, and with courage. To resist the constant temptation to escape the present by trying to fix, predict, or control what comes next.

Peter didn’t fail because he lacked knowledge. He failed because fear pulled him out of the moment. Everything he thought would happen was unraveling. His expectations of how the story was supposed to go were collapsing in real time. And in that moment of fear, when the future felt unsafe and uncertain, he rejected the very presence of God standing before him.

I see myself in Peter more than I want to admit.

I reject Jesus not always through outright denial, but through distraction. Through dismissing the extraordinary weight of the present moment while obsessing over tomorrow. I do it when fear of what might happen robs me of faithfulness to what is happening. Scripture is clear: I cannot control tomorrow. Not even a little. But I can participate in today. And when I do, I am present with Christ. When I don’t, I turn away from Him.

Peter denied Jesus because he was trying to survive the moment instead of inhabit it.

How often do I do the same?

We rejected perfection. Humanity looked at goodness without flaw and executed it. That truth should horrify us, yet it reveals something deeper: goodness will always be resisted in a broken world. If I seek God honestly, suffering will follow. Not because God is cruel, but because light exposes darkness, and darkness lashes out.

There are moments when the cross feels absurd in its mercy. When the depth of forgiveness stops me cold. I ask God to keep that reality alive in me, not as guilt, but as grounding. I ask Him to steady the pendulum so my life is not a constant swing between obedience and rebellion, but a quiet, faithful staying in the present...where Jesus is always found.

To live the moment well is not passive. It is courageous. It is resistance against fear. It is the daily choice to trust God here, now, without guarantees. And when I do that, I do not reject Christ. I receive Him.

6Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 7Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

8Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

10And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

1 PETER 5:6-11