Peace Carrier
And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body and be thankful
(Colossians 3:15, NKJV)
There is an African proverb which says: ‘when two elephants fight, the grass suffers’. The beauty of this saying is in the imagery it creates in our mind’s eye; the big size of the African elephants engaged in a fight maybe for water or something else and the grass below upon which the big feet of the elephant trample. It is bad enough for the grass to have the full weight of the elephant step on it, but to be forcefully stumbled upon by the same weight in a fight, leaves the grass very helpless. That is the picture of our world when nations, communities, families or individuals fight each other, there are other people who like the grass suffer as ‘collateral damage’. These could be children in the societies or the old and vulnerable. The economy of a place also suffers with conflict and often we hear of hunger as a resultant outcome of a conflict. There are many influential global organizations which work hard to maintain peace in the world, and they remind us that lack of peaceful co-existence takes away productivity and prospects for the future. We are not short of examples where this is the reality.
Beloved, peace is not only needed in the global context, but is fundamental in our own lives. It is a fact that peace influences our relationships, where we can be fully ourselves and yet know we are accepted. The search for peace and harmony while seen in the outside world, starts from deep within our hearts. One could appear all well put together, but be suffering a lot of turmoil within his heart. While we need to be at peace with each other, we need to first of all be at peace with ourselves, that is where it all starts. Few people take the time to find peace in their hearts and because they are not having inner harmony, they cannot be in one accord with others. Jesus who is the prince of peace (Isaiah 9:6), knew the world would disturb our hearts and so He left us His Peace, a peace which the world cannot understand, His peace (John 14:27). It is God’s peace within us that connects with others peaceably. Living and being in peace is so important to God that in the beatitudes, Jesus said that the peace makers are not only blessed but shall also be called the sons of God (Matthew 5:9). Our receiving of God’s peace calls on us to be peace makers too.
Apostle Paul in writing to the Ephesians about the armour of God, tells us to put on the shoes of the gospel of peace (Ephesians 6:15). Another beautiful analogy of the gospel of peace as shoes. Some shoes are stylish and fashionable, others are functional and yes, there are many people in the world who do not have any shoes to wear. Shoes for the main part are for protecting our feet from elements like hot sand, frozen ice, dirt, stones and pebbles on a path etc. Shoes help cushion our feet preventing us from pain and damage. Could it be that living in peace has a protective message on our environment and communities? Doesn’t peace also protect our health from some illnesses? The analogy of ‘shoes of the gospel of peace’, presents us with not only a passing appreciation of the place of peace in lives but a fundamental acknowledgement of the weight of the gospel we preach and live by.
Beloved, we have a responsibility to embrace and share peace with our world. May we know that true peace does not come from the efforts of man no matter how well meaning, it only comes from God. This is the peace within, regardless of the turbulence around. Our Lord Jesus commanded peace in the middle of a storm (Mark 4:39), and He does the same thing in our daily lives. May the peace of Christ continually rule in our hearts (Colossians 3:15). May our strength be found from the peace that we have in God, so that we can extend the same to our world. We all need a large share of peace.
Thoughts:
Are you peacefully?
How do you calm your surroundings?
What is your experience concerning God’s peace?