Musings on Being a Peacemaker
…seek peace and pursue it.
Psalm 34:14b, 1 Peter 3:11b, NIV
Then Noah sent out a dove to see if the waters had receded from the surface of the ground.
Genesis 8:8, NET
There is more than one kind of flood bringing destruction to the earth today.
The waters of conflict, unrest, and war rise over the landscape. Where are the Noahs of today? Who is willing to open the window and send out their peace until it finds a place to lodge in the heart of another?
The dove could not find a resting place for its feet because water still covered the surface of the entire earth, and so it returned to Noah in the ark. He stretched out his hand, took the dove, and brought it back into the ark.
Genesis 8:9
Send Your Peace Out Courageously
It takes courage to be a peacemaker. We must be brave to open our windows and take the first step toward peace. Floodwaters of conflict obscure the human heart and we can’t be sure our peace will be received.
If your peace returns void, wait patiently and don’t give up. Take your peace in hand and shelter it, protect it, preserve it; don’t abandon it.
The Lord is the only one who can make the waters recede, and He will surely do it in His time as we trust Him. His very name is the Prince of Peace.
Send Your Peace Out Patiently
He waited seven more days and then sent out the dove again from the ark. When the dove returned to him in the evening, there was a freshly plucked olive leaf in its beak! Noah knew that the waters had receded from the earth.
Genesis 8:10-11
After a time, at the right time, send it out again.
If your peace returns with a sign of hope, you will know that the waters are receding! Rejoice in that hope and continue to wait patiently. Don’t give up.
Send Your Peace Out Hopefully
He waited another seven days and sent the dove out again, but it did not return to him this time.
Genesis 8:12
After a time, at the right time, send it out again. Then you will know your peace has found a place to dwell, and that the Lord has brought you out into a new beginning and restored your life and community.
Worship the Lord for What He Has Done
Then God spoke to Noah and said, “Come out of the ark, you, your wife, your sons, and your sons’ wives with you. Bring out with you all the living creatures that are with you. Bring out every living thing, including the birds, animals, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. Let them increase and be fruitful and multiply on the earth! Noah went out along with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives…Noah built an altar to the Lord.
Genesis 8:15-17, 18, 20a
Stop and worship God for receding the waters, restoring the landscape of your life, and returning you to community. He will surely do it; His own name is the Prince of Peace. The Lord is the one who restores peace between humans and between them and their God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God.
Matthew 5:9, NET
For the one who wants to love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from uttering deceit. And he must turn away from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous and his ears are open to their prayer. But the Lord’s face is against those who do evil.
1 Peter 3:10-12, NET
Do you want to really live? Would you love to live a long, happy life? Then make sure you don’t speak evil words or use deceptive speech. Turn away from evil and do what is right. Strive for peace and promote it.
Psalm 34:12-14 NET
Grace and peace to you from he who is, and who was, and who is still to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ—the faithful witness, the firstborn from among the dead, the ruler over the kings of the earth. To the one who loves us and has set us free from our sins at the cost of his own blood and has appointed us as a kingdom, as priests serving his God and Father—to him be the glory and the power for ever and ever! Amen.
Revelation 1:4-6
Lord, make me a peacemaker. Amen.
Photo by Kevin Cress on Unsplash
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