The Peace

Today my YW lesson was on being a peacemaker. As I thought about over the past week in preparation for my lesson, as I reviewed the suggested readings (one from Pres. Faust on Forgiveness and the other from Pres. Eyring on Unity) I was struck with an interesting distinction - one I brought out for the girls.

1. In the world, when we think of peace, I think we could define peace as the absence of fighting. The absence of ill-will, hatred, oppression.

2. But to the Savior, the Prince of Peace, peace is so much more. His peace is not merely the absence of fighting - but the presence of love and goodwill, the exercising of choice to find a better way, to choose the better part. To proactively love and serve others and not wait for them to love or serve us first. The choice to frankly forgive wrongs others have done us, to not take offense, to let anger and grudges go. The choice to treat others as we want to be treated and then to treat them as the Savior would treat them. It's the choice to love and hope - unconditionally. The Savior's peace casts out doubts, worries, and fear (John 14:27), empowers us to move forward with faith that He is over all, and shelters and encourages us when things are hard.

In that light, I believe that the Lord was wise when He commanded us to be peacemakers - not peacekeepers. Peacekeepers defend lines - they enfore the no fighting policy. Because as long as we have no fighting - we have peace. Peacekeepers are also quick to gloss over feelings and hurts - reminding everyone that "everything's going so well" and that we all love each other - so we can stop fighting - even when everything's not fine and things really need to be healed and dealt with.

Peacemaking, on the other hand - is the Lord's work. It's working together to build, to make, and to grow His peace within each one of us and then within our families. It involves our choices at every level within our relationships. But most importantly, it involves the Prince of Peace - the Savior Himself, whose atonement is at work with and within every change of heart, every choice to do good and speak good instead of to do bad and speak bad. As we seek to repent of our sins, to frankly forgive those who've hurt us, and then find the courage to move forward, it is only through His atonement that we find personal peace and that we can be an agent for making peace in our homes.

And this is how we learn to be like Him. For this is how God lives, right? There are two choices - one to hurt, one to help. He chooses to help. To love, or to hate. He chooses to love. To fight or to forgive. He chooses to forgive. As we learn of Him, as we take His yoke upon us, and we strive to become like Him - we find peace and we make peace.

Then, as the scriptures repeatedly promise, we can share - as joint heirs with Christ - all that the Father has. Even an eternal piece of the peace He has made and promised to each who faithfully seeks Him. For "blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God."


Pondering,
Meredith