Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Matthew 5:9
People who aren’t, by nature, peacemakers likely think it’s easy to be one. All you have to do is give in to everybody else, right? Wrong.
It’s not a passive word: peacemaker. To make peace is an active, creative enterprise. You’re taking discord and making peace out of it. That means you have to persuade those who are singing off key to change their tune, or get everybody else to adjust by a half-step or so to bring the group back into harmony.
I’ve seen some amazing peacemakers at work over the past few weeks. Two friends very quickly made peace with their own struggles so they could help the ones they love be at peace. Another is looking for direction when, after a lifetime of peacemaking, she’s faced with a situation where she herself cannot, in good conscience, compromise. It’s a painful situation, for somebody who’s used to bringing others together, to suddenly feel like she’s standing alone. She's struggling to make peace with herself, which can be the hardest peacemaking of all.
Though we tend to think of peacemaking as settling differences, it isn’t always about bringing compromise; sometimes it’s about bringing comfort. Our church is in dire need of peacemaking right now, not because we don’t get along with each other but because we have so many members dealing with serious illnesses that the whole congregation is hurting for them and for their families. We’ll find our peace together through prayer—and just by spending time together as a church family.
Praying this morning for the peacemakers—and for all those longing for peace in their hearts.
[Image by Eric Yuen from Freerangestock.com]
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