This morning I was glancing through Facebook, and was just so sad to see all the outrage, all the dueling facts and thoughts, and found myself praying, "Where is the peace Lord?" The almost instant reply was, "You are the peace!" That certainly got my attention. Lord, help me to unpack what You mean!
The first thought I had was that I am responsible for the words that come out of my mouth, the words that I write, and the opinions that I share, and I can either foment division or spread peace.
I guess I should define what I think He meant by peace. I don't believe He meant passivity or quietness, but rather the fruit of the Spirit - peace. I was immediately reminded of the verses from Paul's letter to the Galatians 5:22-26 NIV:
[22] "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, [23] gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. [24] Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. [25] Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. [26] Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other."
Oh to see the world expressing the fruit of the Spirit in their lives and with their mouths and online posts!
Secondly, as a representative of Jesus, as someone who has Him living inside me, I am responsible for my actions in His name. Bill Johnson, one of my favorite authors and preachers, says that He can't afford to have any thought in his head that doesn't come from God or agree with God's thoughts (or something along that line). He is often speaking about our own inner thoughts and how they impact our identity, for we believe our inner voice more than just about any other voice. However, I think this should also mean the thoughts that come out of our mouths.
So again, what fruit am I bearing? What fruit am I showing the world?
Am I living by the Holy Spirit, staying in step with the Holy Spirit, as Paul encourages us in verse 25 above?
Paul, in writing those verses was providing a counterpoint to an earlier statement, and I thought that was enlightening in context to what I was reading this morning on Facebook. Here are the verses immediately preceding that which I quoted above - Galatians 5:19-21 NIV:
[19] "The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; [20] idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions [21] and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God."
I think that comparing the two lists, it is easy to see which is more prevalent in today's social media news reel. If we tweak the word rage to the more common phrase "outrage" we find an almost exact list of the headlines and posts... hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of outrage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, etc.
Again, stepping back and looking at these lists, I can choose which fruit I want to bear, which fruit I want to showcase with my life and my words.
So, this morning, I am encouraged to be a bearer of peace, to live my life in such a way that my words and actions promote peace! In fact, I want to bear all the fruit of the Spirit in my life, love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I want my words and actions to establish peace in my heart and mind. I want to be a beach-head of God's presence here on earth, expressing His character and representing Him in all I do.
Lord, to quote a famous song, "let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me!"
Amen!
May the peace of the Lord, and all the other fruit of the Spirit be poured into your life today! May His presence in your heart and mind establish a beach-head of peace that pushes back the clamoring voices.
Sam
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