Pause

Peace, even just a few moments of being truly at ease, seems very, very hard to come by sometimes. There are just too many options for doing something "right now!" Slowing down becomes a luxury.

So...what to do? How to be? What next?

Peace, just a few moments of being truly at ease, could be there for you now, in a few moments within the heartbeat of God.

Listen

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. And this is the name by which he will be called: “The Lord is our righteousness.”

Jeremiah 23:5-6

Think

The movie is getting a little long. The plot has slowed, the characters have been introduced, and the story’s gotten a little too complex for comfort. And so, with the remote control in hand, you zip the screen to the final scene, where everything ends happily ever after. With tension gone and the end in mind, it’s back to the middle where now it’s a little easier to watch.

That’s the kind of faith we have, except ours is no fairy tale. The prophets of old spoke of the hope that would come in the future. It is a hope that we know as Jesus Christ. Good news for the poor. Friendship for the lonely. Justice for the vulnerable.

Yet we live in the middle of the story. We’ve seen this just and righteous peacemaker, yet we wait and watch and work to more fully usher his kingdom into the earth. We know the end of this good news, even as we enjoy the middle of the story. It’s the story we’ll tell today.

John Woods

Pray

Righteous God, who keeps your promises to your people, help me to share the story of peace with all those in my path, so that they may join the story that you are writing through me. Amen.

Go

Go in peace
With Christ now at your side.
Go with a sense of ease
That only Christ provides.
Go to share the calm within.
Peace.
Peace again.