Thought to Ponder: Peacemaker !
Jesus spent much of His ministry tearing down barriers and building bridges. He did it through acts of love such as washing the feet of those who would fail and betray Him, eating with a tax collector everybody in town despised, and giving hope to a fallen woman that society condemned. The Bible says, “Peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness” (James 3:18 NLT). Words of peace are like seeds. They don’t produce fruit overnight, but slowly and silently they work their way to the surface, changing hearts, minds, attitudes, and futures. Doctor Robert Oppenheimer, the noted physicist who masterminded the first atomic bomb, was asked by a congressional committee if there was any defense against it. Addressing a hushed audience he replied, “Yes—peace!” Now, if peace can defuse an atomic bomb, think what it can do in the lives of the people you come in contact with! Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.” Every day you’ll meet frightened, despairing, lonely, angry people who need a word of peace. Do you have one? Solomon offers us three ways to calm strife, defuse a tense situation, and get a better result: (1) Patience. “A hot-tempered man stirs up dissension, but a patient man calms a quarrel” (Proverbs 15:18 NIV). (2) Self-control. “Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city” (Proverbs 16:32 NIV). (3) Wisdom. “A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense” (Proverbs 19:11 NIV). By bob gass