Counter Intuitive

I am currently reading through the Gospel of Mark and then I am going to go through it again with the commentary written by Jim Edwards, a professor from Whitworth and great Markian scholar. Today I read the part where Peter denies Jesus 3 times after Jesus has been arrested and is being beaten. I was struck by how horrible it would feel to be abandoned by your closest friends in such a desperate hour of your life. I can imagine Peter's shame when he hears the rooster crow and realizes that Jesus was right about him. It makes me wonder why in the world Jesus would stick by us and continue to love us when we are such jerks sometimes, being guided by fear or selfishness. Then Peter became a great evangelist and the Rock of the Church. WOW! God does not make sense to me much of the time, but it gives me hope that he can use me and still thinks it's worthwhile to love and help me. Sometimes His forgiveness is so overwhelming or counter intuitive that I'm not sure I can accept it or that it's real. Thank God it is real and present even when I don't think about it.