Peacemaker

“Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called children of God.”

I pray you are still walking with me on the way to the Cross during this Lent.  Our journey is not a celebration until that stone is rolled from the tomb and our Jesus has risen – for us and for our sins.  

So, this Beatitude spoken by Jesus during his Sermon on the Mount, to be a peacemaker, is our focus this week.  Humor me – Write on a piece of paper, “If I could bottle the feeling of peace, it would be when I….” – and then write down your answer.  My answer would be, “If I could bottle the feeling of peace, it would be when I am sitting by the sea, watching and listening to the waves gently make their way to shore time after time after time.”  But, in reality, I know I can’t hold onto that peace by just sitting and watching the sea perform day after day.  In fact, Jesus is not only asking us to feel peace, but to actually be peacemakers.  It’s an action word, requiring us to make attempts in some small way to create peace with and in others.  Not an easy task many times, is it?   Being a peacemaker on Jesus’ team may not always mean going along with the crowd and sometimes may not make us friends, even to the point of feeling uncomfortable.  But that was why Jesus was here, to stir things up.  This is definitely a challenge for me.  It’s my nature (and maybe the easy way out) to want everyone to always get along – to keep the peace, as they say.   So, how can we live out His words better?  Maybe Jesus would say, before we can be a peacemaker for others, we first must develop that peace within ourselves.  Balance!  Maybe we could take some time this week to sit quietly for a few minutes or longer.  Silently, repeat the word peacemaker a few times while breathing slowly in and out.   Then, just be with Him in silence, with no expectations.  Listen for how Jesus may prompt you with a simple word or thought on how you can be a better peacemaker in one area of your life?  Then during this week, try and keep a mental picture of what you, as that peaceful person, would look like – such as having calmness, being more understanding, and maybe even extending a branch of peace from the olive tree in Jesus’ Garden.  I tried it myself once with someone I allowed to easily take away my peace.  I approached it differently and I felt a huge weight was lifted.  Unfortunately, it’s not as simple as just waving a magic wand and suddenly peace appears within each of us.  We need to constantly ask the Holy Spirit to help us on our journey, always striving to extend peace to others and to hold that peace within us – the perfect balance.  So, even after the stone has been rolled away and we’ve exclaimed “Halleluiah”, let’s continue to walk our journey hand in hand with Jesus every single day!  Amen.

 “Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called children of God.”  Matthew 5:9