Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life and the time it takes to get to work.

I'm Tanya Wilmuth.

When I write these episodes, I usually try to land on a question that serves as the backdrop for everything we're going to talk about.

This time, I couldn't quite nail it down at first. But as I sat with this passage and especially with the naive confidence of Peter here in this passage, I kept having flashbacks to my days at CrossFit. It was a short-lipped season to be sure, and one of the main reasons was the pull-up. So you're supposed to be able to jump up, grab a bar that's a foot or two above your head and hang there and pull your entire body up multiple times.

There are different versions of pull-ups at CrossFit. There's the strict pull-up where you hang with straight arms and pull-up using pure strength.

There's the kipping pull-up where you swing your body to generate momentum kind of like kids on a playground. And then there's the bandipping pull-up where you swing your body to generate momentum, kind of like kids on a playground.

And then there's the band and pull-up. That one is for people who can't do either of the first two.

Sometimes pull-ups are part of the skills portion of the workout, like you're practicing.

But other times they were part of the actual workout, which meant if you couldn't do them, you were stuck.

There was nothing I was ever going to do inside those four walls that was magically going to make me able to do a pull-up.

But don't think I didn't try.

I attempted every version imaginable until the coach finally brought me a band, helped me loop it under my feet, and coached me through it.

I dreaded pull-up days, but I dreaded

being the one with the green band even more. But why? What did I have to prove? What was going to

change in the world if I did or did not use a band to do a pull-up? Why did I agonize over this

thing? Have you ever felt that way about something in your life?

Like, you have to prove you can do it? Peter knew that feeling well. Peter had grand intentions

when it came to Jesus' mission, or at least what he thought to be true of Jesus' mission.

Peter meant what he said, unaware of the difference between himself and Jesus, the king of the

universe, unaware of his own weakness, Peter said to Jesus,

Even if everyone else deserts you, I never will. And Jesus replied, I tell you the truth, Peter,

this very night before the rooster crows twice, you will deny three times that you even know me.

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