My message on discovering, embracing, and living out God's gift of peace in our lives.
My thoughts about God, running, culture, relationships, the economy, the Church, and pretty much anything else that is on my mind.
Showing posts with label Peace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Peace. Show all posts
Monday, December 16, 2013
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
WE Christmas - Peace
The soldier finds it in the middle of a battle. It can be missing for the monk kneeling at the center of the Sanctuary. The woman walking through a busy city can have plenty of it. The man sitting on the dock observing a quiet lake may only remember a glimpse of it from days long past.
It has almost nothing to do with our surroundings and everything to do with our heart. It is elusive. If it wasn’t, everybody would have plenty of it. Nothing quite like it exists. You recollect when you had it and want to return to those times.
It has almost nothing to do with our surroundings and everything to do with our heart. It is elusive. If it wasn’t, everybody would have plenty of it. Nothing quite like it exists. You recollect when you had it and want to return to those times.
Peace. The Hebrews call it shalom. The Latins call it pax.
The Greeks call it eirene. Peace has
more to do with balance and focus and contentment and wholeness than it does
with the absence of violence. Biblical peace means completeness: the awareness
we have what we need and who we need to be wholly and happily complete.
We live in a world that makes peace a challenge. Persistent
distractions. Saturated schedules. Burdens from yesterday. Anxiety about
tomorrow. Conflict with loved ones. Jealousy and envy. Consumerism. You name
it. And then a persistent, quiet voice speaks words of grace:
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. –Jesus in John 14:27
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. –Jesus in John 14:27
Peace doesn’t come from a self-help program or planning or
simplicity or healthy boundaries or perceived security. It comes from only from
God. We won’t have peace with the world or any person in the world until we are
at peace with ourselves.
Don’t worry about
anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him
for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds
anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you
live in Christ Jesus. –Philippians 4:6-7
It’s late. It’s been a long day. Getting the kids ready for
school. Getting ready for work. A stressful day at work. Getting kids from
school to sports to home. Making dinner. Cleaning up from dinner. Helping with
homework. Doing laundry. A phone call to her mother who isn’t feeling the best.
She looks at the messy house, turns off the light, and lays her head on the
pillow. She is looking at six hours of sleep and she needs every moment of it
because tomorrow will be just as relentless. She prays. Thanks God for kids, a
job, food, the guy sleeping on the other side of the bed, provision,
forgiveness, and potential.
Nothing about her day would indicate peace. But the One who
created the day dishes it out anyway and then serves a few more helpings for
good measure. God gives it and it’s ours for the taking.
The best is yet to come…
Craig
The best is yet to come…
Craig
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Monday, December 17, 2012
Christmas Carols: Angels We Have Heard on High
We had over 850 people in worship on Sunday. Here is the message from the 9:00 a.m. worship experience. A DVD of the Christmas musical will be available on Sunday morning.
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Give Us Your Peace
Dear God -
Amen.
In places like Somalia and Sudan – Connecticut and Korea
Bullets fly - Children die - Parents cry
Give us your peace
Broken hearts
Lives too short
Fear of life and fear of death
Knots in our stomach and sleepless nights
Worries about tomorrow compete for space in our mind with regrets from the past
Give us your peace
Restlessness, impatience, annoyances, intolerance, frustration, and anger
They fill our lives like melted snow floods a fragile river
Give us your peace
Prince of Peace – Take our burdens and give us rest.
Wonderful Counselor – Show us the way to peace.
Through the deepest valleys
In the darkest places
During the times we are completely alone
Show us the way to peace
Peace with You
Peace with others
Peace with the world
And peace with ourselves
Give us your peace
Dysfunction, dismay, and despair – They exist in the world.
But you have overcome the world
Help us to be overcomers who embrace your peace
We give you our fears
We offer you our failures
Our hearts are no longer troubled because of your peace
You are God and your peace surpasses all understanding
Guard our hearts and our minds
Teach us your presence is greater than our struggles.
Give us your peace.
Amen.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Sunday, December 19, 2010
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