Alive - by Dave Smith

• Sweetheart died in 1835.
• Had a nervous breakdown in 1836.
• Defeated for Speaker in 1838.
• Defeated for nomination for Congress in 1843.
• Elected to Congress in 1846.
• Lost re-nomination in 1848.
• Rejected for land officer in 1849.
• Defeated for US Senate in 1854.
• Defeated for nomination for vice president in 1856.
• Defeated again for US Senate in 1858.
• Elected president in 1860. 2
Abraham Lincoln overcame more than his fair share of setbacks,
before fulfilling his destiny to become what many people consider to
be one of the greatest US presidents. He successfully won the civil
war, which was largely fought in the cause of a ‘freedom’ movement –
the ending of slavery.
Overcoming frustration, failure and futility is central to the story of
another hugely influential historical figure, the first-century Christian
leader, Simon Peter. His birth name was Simon, son of Jonah. He
grew up around the Sea of Galilee, became a fisherman and was first
introduced to Jesus by his brother Andrew. At that moment, Jesus
gave him the nickname ‘Peter’, which means ‘rock’ or stone (John
1:41–42).
Then came a defining moment: Peter had been out fishing all night
(the best time to fish) and had caught nothing. Having got into Peter’s
boat, Jesus instructed Peter to throw out his nets into the deep,
resulting in such a huge catch of fish that both his and his partners’
boats begin to sink. Peter’s response was to fall to his knees and
declare: ‘Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!’ But Jesus didn’t