Prince of Peace

What would you give for peace? Peace among friends and family, peace in the neighborhood, peace in the city, peace among nations, or that “peaceful easy feeling”? Real peace is hard to come by these days. I suppose in a broken world, with broken people, it has always been that way. Even Jesus said there would be wars and rumors of wars till he returned.We all dream of peace, even when it looks hard. Some people even decide that they will never find true peace with the culture the way it is, so they move out and create little utopias where they can escape the never-ending strivings of people, the endless bombardment of advertising aimed to trouble our peace till we get the latest toy or gadget, or the constant level of discourse on social media. People have always done stuff like this, however there is one problem: when you move out of the culture into your own idyllic enclave with your true soul mates—you and your friends carry the war and lack of peace with you.This Sunday, we will explore this theme and our own lack of peace. One of the greatest things we learn about Jesus is that he is the “Prince of Peace.” I don’t know about you, but I need Jesus to be that for me. I was exhausted on Thursday after a quick trip into the flooded fields and mud of Arkansas to celebrate the reopening of duck season. That night I was in a foul mood, and Addison’s mood was equally as foul: my home was not a place of peace. As much as we want to pass the buck, when there is no peace in our sphere of influence, we’d best take a look into our own hearts before we start casting stones.So, that being said, I hope you are interested! Jesus’ promise is that he is our Peace and left us to be a people who, wherever they go, bring peace to the turmoil and chaos around them. I have one place I know of that is essential if you are going to continually deal with your own anger, hurt, anxiety or whatever destroys your peace—The Soul Room. Again this Sunday, Josh and I will talk in Sunday School about how we meet God in prayer daily. There is no way to know God’s friendship and his peace without the habit of prayer. So, if you need help or want to learn more, I encourage you to make time and join us.Blessings,Jim