Scriptures: Luke 5:1-11, Luke 22:60-62, John 21:1-19

A LESSON FROM PETER:

There’s More to Your Setback

“Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” (Matthew 4:19 NLT) 

Can you think of a time you hit a setback, and you settled? A time you reverted to what was comfortable instead of progressing towards what you knew you were called to do? 

A fisherman by trade, Peter knew a lot about life in a boat. It was familiar to him. A comfortable place. This is where Jesus meets Peter and says “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” (Matthew 4:19 NLT). 

Later, Jesus called him from a boat, yet again. “’Come,’” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.” (Matthew 14:29). For Peter, stepping out of the boat looked like stepping out in faith. Imagine the courage it must have taken to trust Jesus enough to let go of what he knew time and time again. 

But even the most courageous can be shaken through the trials of life. 

Peter, who dropped everything at a moment’s notice to follow Jesus, who walked on water in faith toward Jesus, is the same person who denied Jesus in His greatest time of suffering (Luke 22:60-62). 

Losing Jesus, the person Peter spent years serving left him devastated. And out of that devastation, he made a decision… He returned to the boat Jesus had already called him from. 

Have you ever gone back to something you knew God had already called you from? 

Peter hit a setback, and he settled. But this didn’t change Jesus’ love for him, and it didn’t change the call on his life. When he tried to go back to what was comfortable, Jesus, once again, met him at the boat and called him back into his purpose. 

He went on to preach the gospel to thousands, perform miracles, and play a major part in building the church. He might’ve settled momentarily, but when he stepped out in faith again, he saw that God wasn’t finished writing his story. 

Maybe you’ve had moments like Peter. Maybe you feel like you’re regressing instead of progressing. But your momentary setback isn’t permanent. Don’t let it keep you from what you’re still called to do. 

Jesus resurrected to resurrect us. It’s time to trust God with your next step, because there’s more on the other side of your “yes.” Get out of the boat. Take a step towards Jesus. Trust that there’s more to your story this Easter. 

“Then he said to him, ‘Follow me!’” (John 21:19b)

Scriptures: Luke 1:26-38, John 19:25-30

A LESSON FROM MARY:

There’s More to Your Promise

“Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” (Luke 1:28) 

Envisioning the promise is different than living in it. 

Mary was chosen to birth the Messiah, the one promised for hundreds of years. She was called highly favored, and called to raise a son whose kingdom would never end (Luke 1:33). But what happens when your experience doesn’t match your expectation? 

Mary saw Jesus arrive on this earth as her baby boy. He was a promise kept, not just to her, but to generations. She also saw Him lose His life at the hands of those He came to save. She watched her son suffer. She watched her promise die. 

Have you ever embraced a dream, a relationship, or a calling, just to turn around and watch it end? You thought God had one thing in store for you, but it turned out differently than you imagined. 

How do you move forward when your expectation doesn’t meet reality? 

Mary saw her son die. Her relationship with Him, on earth, was finished. But Mary learned, through her pain, that even though “living it” looks different than “envisioning it,” God’s promise never fails. 

In Scripture, Mary is mentioned one more time after the loss of her son. In this moment, she was talking to God, “praying constantly” (Acts 1:14). 

She chose to move forward in faith, even through her loss. 

The promise made to Mary didn’t play out how any mother would plan. She faced some low points. She dealt with loss. But that didn’t change her commitment to what God was calling her into. She continued to pray with the disciples. She became one of the first members of the church. And the promise she watched die resurrected into something more than she ever expected. 

Her son died, but her Messiah rose. 

Even through the unimaginable, you don’t have to hide, ignore, or deny your pain. Acknowledge your disappointments. Face them prayerfully. Give God the space to reveal Himself to you as you move forward one step at a time. You’re still here, so He’s not done with you yet. There’s still more to your promise. 

“I am the Lord’s servant […]. May your word to me be fulfilled.” (Luke 1:38a)

Scriptures: John 11:6-16, John 20:24-31

A LESSON FROM THOMAS:

There’s More to Your Doubt

“Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” (John 20:25b) 

It can be hard to accept the difficult things that happen in life. It can be even harder to believe something good can come from them. 

Thomas was one of the 12 disciples who followed Jesus. In the three years he spent with Jesus, Thomas had moments of great faith. When Jesus wanted to return to Bethany after Lazarus died, the disciples feared it would mean death for them. But Thomas said, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” (John 11:16) 

But even the most faithful can have moments of doubt. 

When Thomas was with the disciples after Jesus’ death, some of them started to say they had seen Jesus raised from the dead. But Thomas wouldn’t believe it. He refused to believe it. 

Thomas often gets a bad reputation for doubting Jesus after His death. But, if we’re honest, who could blame him? 

In situations when things don’t go the way we hoped, it’s easy to lose confidence. When you’re disappointed, it’s natural for doubt to be your default. 

But in the midst of his doubt, Thomas had an encounter with the risen Jesus. And that encounter caused his doubt to die. Not only did Thomas realize his teacher had miraculously risen, but he also recognized who Jesus truly was as he declared, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28) 

It was in this moment Jesus taught Thomas an important lesson: doubt doesn’t deter His presence. 

When you face disappointment, what is your default? It may be natural to fall into feelings of doubt. That’s okay — it happens to all of us. But what’s important is what we do with those feelings. 

Don’t allow your doubt to be your downfall. Instead, let it be an opportunity to work out your faith. 

Whatever your situation, trust what Scripture has promised: 

He has risen. (Mark 16:6)
He is alive. (Acts 1:3)
He is for you. (Romans 8:34) 

Have faith. Because there’s more to your story on the other side of the doubt. 

“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:29)

Scriptures: Mark 16:1-16, John 20:11-18

A LESSON FROM MARY MAGDALENE:

There’s More to Your Confusion

They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” (John 20:13)

“I don’t know.” These words usually express confusion about the in-betweens of life. The space between good times and tough times. Between certainty and uncertainty. Between hope and hopelessness.

Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus’ earliest followers. He found her in her darkest place and healed her. She traveled with Him and witnessed His miracles. Then, she witnessed His death on the cross.

We get to read about the Easter story in hindsight, knowing resurrection is coming. But for Mary, it was three days of uncertainty, without being able to skip ahead to the end of the story.

What do you do when you’re in between? When you find yourself between the prayer and its answer? When you’re between the crucifixion and the resurrection?

From Mary, we learn the best place to be during uncertain times is close to Jesus.

We read about Jesus’ final words on the cross. But Mary was close enough to hear Him utter “It is finished” with her own ears. We read that Jesus “bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John 19:30), but Mary saw the life leave His body as He exhaled for the last time.

Even then, Mary stayed close until Jesus’ body was taken down from the cross, and followed as He was laid to rest in a borrowed tomb. She was first to find the stone rolled away and see Jesus was no longer in the tomb.

Nobody stayed closer to Jesus from Friday to Sunday than Mary. And because of this, she was positioned to be the first to learn that the story didn’t end at the cross. Jesus chose to reveal Himself to Mary as our resurrected Savior, and she became the messenger of the Easter news.

Standing in the tomb, Mary didn’t know where Jesus was. Walking away, she knew He had risen. Her clarity came from her proximity to Him.

Because of what Jesus did on the cross, His Spirit lives within us when we invite Him in. He longs to be close to you, but the question is, “are you drawing near to Him?”

When you need clarity in the midst of your confusion, remember to come close and follow His words: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Matthew 7:7-8)

“I have seen the Lord!” (John 20:18a)

Scriptures: Mark 11:1-11, John 19:1-30, Luke 24:1-8

A LESSON FROM JESUS:

There’s More to Your Story

“See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9b) 

Just days before Jesus would be crucified, He had a triumphant entry into Jerusalem, fulfilling an Old Testament prophecy from hundreds of years ago. Jesus rode in on a donkey and those who followed rejoiced, shouting, “Hosanna in the highest heaven!” (Mark 11:10b). 

But Sunday to Friday turned from triumph to tragedy as the cry of the crowd went from “Hosanna!” to “Crucify Him!” 

Jesus wore a crown of thorns on His head as His cross was carried to Calvary. He was crucified, and with His final breath, He said, “It is finished.” (John 19:30) The earth shook, the veil was torn, and mourning set in. Three days of silence and uncertainty followed. 

After the signs, wonders, and miracles they witnessed, how could those closest to Jesus see that the end of His life was coming near. Jesus said it would happen, but they rejected it. Peter even said, “This shall never happen to you!” (Matthew 16:22b) 

But like most endings we don’t want to see — endings we would avoid if we could — nothing anyone did was going to change the outcome. 

No one who witnessed the cross would have believed there was more to that story. They took His body down, they wrapped it in linen, and they sealed it in a tomb. Jesus’ story was “over.” 

We have all encountered endings: the dissipation of a dream, the end of a relationship, the loss of a loved one. Some we saw coming, and some we didn’t. When your story suddenly stops, when you feel like you’ve hit rock bottom, do you struggle to see that there’s more to your story? 

When you find yourself in that place, remember this: Some things must end for God to do something new. 

As the women approached the tomb and saw the stone rolled away, they quickly learned Jesus’ time walking the earth was indeed finished; but His victory, His Church, and His reign were just getting started. 

Friday had to happen for Sunday to come. God had another chapter in store. 

Putting your hope in Jesus means something you bury today could lead to something new tomorrow. God doesn’t leave us at a gravesite; He leads us with a purpose out of an empty tomb. 

“He is not here; he has risen!” (Luke 24:6a)