Luke 22:32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."
Jesus is speaking to Peter and telling him that He has been praying that Peter's faith does not fail. Now you may know the rest of the story. Peter goes on to deny Jesus three times and then becomes depressed at the knowledge that during his time of trial, his faith failed and he disowned Jesus.
What is interesting is that Jesus didn’t pray that Peter would escape the trial or be protected from the trial. No, Peter needed to go through this trial. It was all a part of him being prepared and galvanized into a strong leader.
Often, as leaders and pastors, we can be over-protective of people. We might pray that they won’t encounter trouble, difficulty, or persecution. Yet, Jesus says we will all face trials and persecution. They come because of our association with Jesus and God uses the same trials and persecution to demonstrate the power of His grace to see you through!
So, Jesus prays “that Peter’s faith should not fail”.
In the gospel account of Peter walking on water, it tells us that Peter only started to sink when he took his eyes off Jesus and onto the stormy waters. So keeping your eyes (focus) on Jesus is a key component to unfailing faith. Practically, keeping your eyes on Jesus is:
Keep hearing and receiving the Good News about Jesus – Hearing the Good News initiates faith. Let's not treat God’s Word like a buffet where we “pick and choose” only what's tasty to us. God’s Word is spiritual food and in the same way, you need a nutritious diet of all food groups (fruits; grains; vegetables; proteins and dairy) – you need to receive all of God’s Word to establish a strong foundation of faith.
Keep speaking and believing the Good News about Jesus – Speaking the Good News activates faith. We need to cultivate a language of faith where the Good News about Jesus continually flows from our lips. It’s talking to yourself in thought and word over and over. The Bible calls this meditating on God’s Word. As you keep hearing Jesus' Good News and speaking Jesus' Good News you will discover you become bolder and a belief takes root in your spirt.
Paul says it so well in Romans 10:6-10.
But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way… “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation.
If believing in your heart and declaring with your mouth is what establishes “Salvation” in your life (the greatest of all miracles and blessings) – then it is the same with all other miracles of life like healing, provision, and restoration of relationships.
Hearing and declare the Good News of Jesus!