When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He then said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep."

"A strangled smile fell from your face. It kills me that I hurt you this way; the worst part is that I didn’t even know. Now, there’s a million reasons for you to go, but if you can find a reason to stay, I’ll do whatever it takes to turn this around. And if you give me a chance, believe that I can change; I’ll keep us together whatever it takes." 

Lifehouse's song "Whatever It Takes" contains many themes that can be discussed as we learn the art of communication in marriage. In fact, the song is a teaching song that outlines some principal ideas of how to make a marriage work. Those ideas can lead to discussion of the ability to talk about deep feelings, the ability to love oneself, and especially what must happen if one wants to "turn things around" in a relationship.

Jesus was interested in teaching people to turn things around. One of those people was his friend and future leader of the movement that he had begun, Peter the Apostle. Jesus knew that Peter had a tendency to forget what was really important in life. He knew that in order to protect himself, Peter had denied that he had even known Jesus. So, near the end of his stay on earth, Jesus gently reminded Peter of what was important in a relationship. 

Whether we are talking about romantic love or love in general, we will discover at times that we have to turn things around. After some personal introspection or maybe after we have heard the anger of someone we may have hurt, we discover that we have broken some things. In the excellent video to the song, everything that has been smashed and destroyed as a result of non-communication is suddenly put back together as the man in the relationship decides that he must communicate. When lack of communication or some other wrong that we have caused occurs, it is a mark of maturity to want to turn things around. It is a lesson that Peter the Apostle learned; it is a lesson that we all must learn. 

THOUGHT
 
PRAYER

Good and gracious God, your Son knew that we make mistakes. Thank you for the grace to recognize our mistakes, and give us the help we need to turn things around in our lives if we must. Be with us, we pray. 

Questions, comments? Let me know. Email Fr. Mike

©2007 Capuchin Province of Mid-America
Fr. Mike Scully is a member of the Capuchin Province of Mid-America