Not long ago, my husband and I were discussing variations between church services of different denominations (we talk about theological things in our downtime. We're kind of funny like that, but hey, we need to get some use out of Chad's Bible degree), and I said, "You know what's great? During the Catholic service, they turn to one another and say 'Peace be with you.' I think we should lose the Evangelical 'stand and greet one another' crap, and instead say 'peace be with you'." For the record, I don't actually think standing and greeting one another is crap. I
do think that 30 seconds is not sufficient for greeting, and since our time is limited, we may as well use it wisely.
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My dad tells me that
"Wings of a Dove" was
my grandad's favourite
song. Source. |
I think it's pretty evident that our world can use some peace. We live in a place of conflict, from full-scale wars to spats with the neighbours. And to some extent, we thrive on it-- one thing that's important for writers to keep in mind is to give our main character plenty of conflict, for example. And who would watch the evening news if
Brian Williams came on every night to say, "Everybody got along great again today! Good job, Earth!" But I doubt that anyone would argue that modern life has too little conflict and too much peace. Even leaving out the bigger stuff, we're harried and stressed. "Peace" is something that you get during your vacation by the lake, not something you get in Monday-Friday life.
And yet, peace is meant to be something that we carry with us: Jesus said, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you" (John 14:27). He didn't intend for us to be always stressed out and stretched so thinly that we left no room for peace in our lives. There are plenty of commercials that promise peace if you'll only use the right shampoo or drink the right coffee or eat the right afternoon snack. Jesus promises peace to those who have chosen to follow him. I worry sometimes that we have collectively rejected the peace of Jesus in favour of a life of crazy.
As ever, I have no secrets on how to do it. Perhaps that will be next week's topic! :) In the meantime, to get us started: What brings you peace?
13 comments:
What brings me peace? Having the husband go out for an hour or two...lol.
Awesome post! Being able to write and escape into different worlds brings me peace, and so does ending the day knowing Jesus is always on our side. :)
I leave the real world for an hour or so before bed and read a good book. That and a bubble bath.
@mybabyjohn: Hee hee.
@Madeline: Thanks! Those are really good ones!
@Donna: Very nice!
ah, peace... laying out in my hammock, with a favorite book that I've read over and over again.
I avoid things that cause chaos or stress. News for one thing. I make sure to take time every day to relax, do something creative or read. Also, family time makes me feel at peace.
Great post!
Peace be with you!
@Linda: That sounds lovely.
@Heather: And also with you! Avoiding the news is SUCH a good plan.
We do the "peace" thing as ELCA Lutherans, too - and we shake hands for good measure. Also, no news for me. A quick peek at the weather and that's it!
erica
We do the "peace" thing as ELCA Lutherans, too - and we shake hands for good measure. Also, no news for me. A quick peek at the weather and that's it!
erica
Nice! I think it's just the non-high-church people who don't. We really should.
I really enjoyed this post.
In my church, we don't talk during the service (although I always sit with my friends and talk through most of it...) but we do plenty of gabbing and catching up before and after.
Peace...what brings me peace? You know, I realized the other day that the thing that brings me the most peace is hearing the sounds of uncontrollable, gut-busting laughter from a child.
Nice. That's very true.
peace - riding my bike or skiing. Gotta be outside, there's always stuff to do when you're inside.
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