Evening Prayer September 3, 2007

Blessed Are the Peacemakers

By: Chaplain Troy Todd

Matthew 5:9 -Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Teaching public Middle School in North Carolina I grew in wisdom of human nature as was evident amongst my students. Too many times one student is telling another student, “Uh huh, I would not take that if I was you, I would put that person in their place.” The majority of students carried within themselves this type of thinking and behaving.

There were a few rare students who would in times of heated debates or elevated hallway discussions would step up to get both sides to calm down before someone did the wrong thing and got in trouble.

The calming down attitude represents what it is like to have the mindset of a peacemaker and not that of a troublemaker. The word peacemaker is found in the Bible and it is called a blessed thing.

A peacemaker can help to calm down a situation they can turn a negative into a positive and help individuals or groups see the bigger picture or view life from a different angle.

We need peace makers, the ones who can calm us down, help us to hear both sides of the story and come up with positive alternative actions to solve a dispute. A peacemaker thinks before he or she speaks. Thinking before speaking allows for a healthy posture and personality. Peacemakers are good to have, good to know, and good to call upon in troubling times.

Tonight, learn to shape your life towards the attributes of a peacemaker. Think before you speak. Make sure you fully understand what someone is trying to say before you act or react. Learn the value of getting rid of stress so that you don’t easily explode when things are not going your way.

Peacemakers, we need them in our family and amongst our friends. We need peacemakers on VICKS because they are the ones who keep us bound together in unity, as one team, with one goal to protect and defend the cause of freedom for all people.

LET US PRAY: Lord, help us to develop skills of a peacemaker, one that has a calming influence when life wants to get hectic and out of control. Thank you for those people in my own life who have helped me in so many ways as a peacemaker. Come now eternal Father, bless us with the peace that passeth all understanding as we trust all that we have into your loving arms. Amen.