At the end of a youth worship experience, I spoke the benediction over the youth in the room and stated, “Go in peace, not in pieces.” I may have heard another pastor speak this benediction in a previous worship experience, and it has always lingered in my mind. We desire peace for our own lives, for our family, for our community, for our nation, and for our world. We note there are times when our lives are in pieces where there is war, division, and unrest. We also note the news reports each day where the war of words and the war of armaments tear down and kill. We desire peace.
In Matthew 5:9 Jesus teaches, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” Jesus invites us, yea calls us, to be people who seek peace. Jesus’ life and ministry is one of peace and in our being peacemakers, we show our relationship with God as illuminating this characteristic of God. The children look more like the Father.
Our calling to be peacemakers begins with finding peace in our own lives. The unrest and war are often tied back to a divided heart where we seek to serve two masters. Jesus spoke to the impossibility of serving two masters when he taught, “No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth” (Matthew 6:24). To find peace in our own lives, we must surrender to Jesus and receive a united heart.
Once we have found peace and unity in our own heart and life, we seek peace in relationships. Just as we must surrender to the Lord, we must in our seeking peace in relationships begin in humility with a desire for reconciliation. In Matthew 5:23-24 Jesus teaches, “So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.”
Finally, we seek peace in our nation and in our world. For most of us, the ability to walk into the office of the President, Prime Minister, or King is unfathomable, yet we can still work toward peace in our world. We begin at the place of listening to the hurts and divisions and seek to advocate for peace during strife and war. We proclaim a message of hope amid despair, while inviting the warring parties to come together to quiet the rhetoric and lay down the weapons. We pray for the hearts of the leaders to be changed and transformed. We pray for their hearts to be softened and open to bring an end to the arguing and fighting. We pray for peace.
Do you need to surrender to find peace in your own heart? Are there places where you need to have humility to work for reconciliation in relationships? Where is God calling you to pray for peace in our nation and in our world today?
Prayer: Lord, I surrender my life to you and desire a united heart centered on you. I want to be a peacemaker, seeing relationships healed and war coming to an end. Let there be peace and let it begin with me. In Jesus’ name. Amen.