Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, ² and he began to teach them. He said:

⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they will be called children of God.

Here we are.  I started this series thinking about how to reflect upon this verse, and that was before certain world events. 

I pray for peace in our world.  There are far more armed conflicts than we normally lift up in a Sunday morning prayer than most of us realize.  There are horrific things happening in every corner of the world.  Peace seems elusive.

Yet Jesus calls us to be peacemakers, and blesses those who are.  If we truly are the children of God, we need to strive for peace, or as one of my favorite hymns says “and let it begin with me.”

What can you do today for peace?  Not just pray for peace in Iran, Gaza, Ukraine, and all the others, but in your corner of the world.  How can you be a peacemaker?

I truly believe that if we all strive for peace in our own little places, in our communities, perhaps that will begin to spread.  If we accept our call to be light in the places of darkness, if we truly spread the good news of God’s love, we can begin to see small peaceful movements.

Let it begin with us.

Peace (and I mean this),

Pastor Bill