Worry About Yourself - Your Daily Forward Devotional

Worry About Yourself

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Read John 21:20-23 (ESV)

Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them, the one whom also had leaned back against him during the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?” When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” Jesus said to them, “if it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” So the saying spread abroad among the brothers that this disciple was not to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die, but, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?”

Reflect

What effect does comparing your situation to others usually have on you? Is it ever helpful to you?

“Why does he always get to be in charge?” “Of course she got the big promotion!” “She always gets exactly what she wants!” “Why does he have it so easy when I have to work so hard for everything!” “But what about her? Does she have to do this too?”

You might think that these are the complaints of bickering children but actually these are examples of the inner grumblings of adults. Yes, even adults in the church. We may not always say them out loud, but I am sure most of us have thought them at one point or another. It seems like we are always looking around to see how we measure up, to gauge expectations, to try to figure out what we should be doing with our lives, and to play the comparison game.

But playing the comparison game has never actually helped me be content with where God has planted me and what He’s given me to do. Plus, it’s a big distraction. When worrying about other people has so much of my attention, I find that I often neglect the responsibilities that He has designated for me.

Remember the context of today’s passage. Jesus had just restored Peter to discipleship and leadership. Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him and commanded that he take care of His sheep. He told Peter what was going to happen to him in the future—he was going to be led to his death against his will and he would be crucified. Then, He told Peter to follow Him.

During this exchange, it seemed as if Peter had his full attention on Jesus and what He was saying to him. But today, we read that he “turned.” He took his eyes off of Christ and looked back at John. Remember that John usually referred to himself as “the other disciple” or “the disciple Jesus loved.” Jesus had just told Peter what was going to happen to him and then he wanted to know “well, what about John?”

But Jesus didn’t tell Peter about John’s future. Essentially, He told Peter to worry about himself. He said “if I want John to stay alive until I come back again, what is that to you?” And then He repeated His command, “You follow me!”

You see, both John and Peter were supposed to follow Christ. But they had different roles to play. God had different plans for each of them. He didn’t want Peter to be so worried about God’s will for John’s life that he didn’t focus on God’s will for his life. Peter was going to have big responsibilities as a leader in the early church. Getting caught up in the affairs of others is just a distraction.

Jesus’ response was misunderstood by many who took it to mean that John was never going to die. John clarified that Jesus just said if. He never actually promised John that he would never die. But we do know that John did live a longer life than most of the other disciples because he was exiled to the island of Patmos (where he wrote Revelation) when he was an older man.

The application for you and I is to worry about ourselves. So often we look to the right and to the left and get distracted by God’s will for other people. But we know what God has told us to do! We need to focus on the role that we know God has called us to do. So, regardless of what everyone else around you is doing, you follow God!

Respond

Lord, I confess that I often get sidetracked when I am worried about other people more than I am worried about myself. Help me to keep my eyes fixed on You so that I can faithfully carry out Your will for my life, even if it's a hard road. Amen.

Reveal: When we are dialed in on following after God, people around us will notice. Always be prepared to give a reason for the hope that helps you persevere (1 Peter 3:15).

~ Pastor Nat Crawford