Episode Transcript
[00:00:01] Speaker A: We're going to be talking about peace this morning.
Just sunny, excited.
Other people are too. Oh, awesome. We're going to be talking about peace this morning.
I'm looking forward to this.
The peace that passes, understanding.
My name is Andrew. If we haven't met, I'd love to meet you afterwards. It's a privilege to be with you for this next 20 minutes, half an hour. I feel the responsibility because I'm keeping everyone from our last day of sunshine before it all caves in later on this afternoon, so gonna move on fast.
I want some sun too.
We're gonna be taking a few moments this morning just to consider peace.
Just to consider peace. A peace that prioritizes presence over productivity, engagement over efficiency. It prioritises us being with him and with each other.
My wife and I, Liana, most people here have met her. She manages to meet everybody.
We've got two gorgeous kids and so very often we're spending time as a family, just like everyone here. We've got busy lives.
So it's a rare occasion where we're alone, where suddenly we've got maybe a drive in the car, some errands to run, a Tesco shop to do, and we jump in the car and we think, wow. You know, automatically the kids music starts playing from the bluetooth because, you know, we've got to the point now where sometimes we drive 20 minutes, 30 minutes, listening to their soundtrack, before we realize they're not in the back singing along. But we're there, sitting in the front seats, that moment of calm and peace, just chatting. Maybe we've got an hour or so to go and run some errands and then I go and put my foot in it. And I wish this was something that only happened once, but very regularly. It happened very recently. A couple of days ago, we were driving down to Tesco in ex fail, and I blurted out, so I've been thinking, Liana, if I drop you off at Tesco, I can run up the road to sports direct and pick up the gift. Then I can go down to B and M and Curry's, then I'll come back and meet you at the back of Tesco, and then we can go and have a little coffee together.
She looks at me and goes, Andrew, I don't want to be productive. I want to be with you.
And half of me is like, you're right, you're right, we better be spending time together. Even if we're wandering through the frozen aisle of Tesco's, it's with each other. It's okay. And the other half is waiting to argue the point that actually, if we did all that and split up, we could get there twice as fast and actually sit down and had a coffee together.
Often. My idol is productivity. And it gets in the way of being with people, being with God.
Who's read the book the ruthless elimination of hurry by John Markoma. A bunch of people here. Beautiful book. I, with much shame, I'm going to confess to you. I listened to that book on double speed.
I apologize. I repent.
A book that could have been purpose written for me.
Come on, let's get to the point where the cliff notes. Can I get the summary online?
We want a piece that prioritises his presence, presence with one another, our sense of being present rather than efficiency and productivity and all the other things that we often put first in our lives.
I'm using busyness and productivity as an example, but I'm super aware that across this congregation people are facing all kinds of challenge.
Just look around you. Look to your left and your right.
There are some people here who are wrangled up in legal disputes that are not their fault. People here who have had difficult health news this week, people here who've maybe had people in their family pass away, people here at risk of deportment, people here and all kinds of challenge. People waiting for a job without provision.
It's so important that as we consider the topic peace, we recognize that peace exists alongside trouble. It's not the absence of problems and trouble. It exists in spite of trouble.
Whatever you're facing this morning, we're going to be praying that the peace that passes all understanding guards your heart and mind.
Not a piece I can adequately describe.
I think we've got Ian and Sandra here from Flame International. They spoke with us back in earlier this year and they minister into incredible situations of trauma.
I don't know what you're facing this morning, but I know that God is able. I know he's enough.
And I know we can face those things with peace if we just load up. John 16 I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. That's a. A statement of fact. Many of us might be experiencing it this morning. You will have trouble, but take heart.
I have overcome the world.
Before I jump in, let's just pray. Let's just bow our heads. Father, we thank you that you've given us peace, that you've overcome the world. Whatever we face this morning, we choose to put it before you to submit it to you, refusing to be overwhelmed by it, knowing that you have overcome the world. Whatever decisions are being made, whatever issues of provision or health, legal or financial, father, we put them before you. When we say we grab hold of, we take hold of peace.
In Jesus name, amen.
Peace is a few things. It's been complete. It's wholeness being enough. I loved Sanny's t shirt this morning. You are enough. Colossians two says, in Christ, we are complete. We're complete in him.
Peace is being enough, knowing that you are enough.
Peace is being together with each other, in alignment, in harmony, in unison, but also with God, reconciled to the king of kings that we were just singing about a moment ago. Peace is togetherness and peace is stillness.
We read in the psalms, be still and know that I am God. Be still and no tranquility in the midst of storm. The ability to just be at peace, to be still.
As I was thinking about this and preparing, I was asking myself the question, why do more christians not have more peace?
When it's a gift that's available, a God that's been given to us, why do we not have more peace?
Is there anyone here who's got enough peace?
We've got quite a big congregation here, you know, one or two saying they've got enough peace. Most of us haven't got enough peace. I don't have enough peace. There are situations that get me out of kilter. There's bad news that sends me on a spin. There's things that cause me anxiety and challenge.
We need more of his peace.
So this morning we're just going to unpack briefly and I'm going to trust that we're going to walk out of this place with more of us having more peace.
We're going to talk this morning about three things. We're going to talk about peace shakers, the things in our lives that shake the peace of God. We're going to talk about peace takers, the fact that we've got to grab hold of what God has made available for us. I'm going to talk about peace makers, the fact that we've got to show up. I loved in the worship this morning. The worship team led us in a whole bunch of songs that used very active words. I'm going to take hold of what the enemy stole. I'm going to cast my burdens. Because so often peace can be characterized as something that's passive, something that just exists.
But the peace of God that we know is something that we've got to go and get and grab hold of and weave into our lives and then has an active part in other people's lives. We're going to talk about the activeness of peace.
So this morning, let's grab hold. Let's avoid the peace shakers, be peace takers, and walk out of this place to be peacemakers.
We're going to walk out of this place being makers and maintainers of the peace of Christ wherever we walk.
We started off with me telling a embarrassing story about my busyness with my wife. Busyness is one of those blockers to peace.
It's one of the challenges we face so often. We put our sense of productivity, our sense of efficiency, our sense of getting things done ahead of being with him.
Maybe it's just me, but I have a challenge with this. Stopping, just sitting down, just allowing time, just waiting. I don't know what your way of overcoming the busyness that's a blocker. The busyness that's a peace shaker in your life. It might be a few moments in the morning before you get up. It might be that thing last at night, it might be on your commute.
But all of us need to find that place, that hiding place, that secret place where we can allow his presence to be prioritized above our busyness and productivity.
Busyness. It's one of those shakers.
Fear is another peace shaker.
Maybe fear rules you rather than peace.
We hear in the New Testament, let the peace of Christ rule you.
But does it? Or is it our anxieties, our concerns about the future, concerns about consequences of actions or decisions we've made, of unfairness that's coming around the corner. Perhaps people here have been shaped by trauma in their past and therefore have a sense of doom, a sense of impending threat that's coming.
We talked a little bit about fear this morning as we were singing, and I truly believe that we've got to be a church that brings that to God and accepts his perfect love, that casts out all fear, because otherwise, fear is a peace shaker.
I think it's a real mark of maturity. When you're able to wake up and you feel that frustration or fear or anxiety that niggle in your mind. You're not sure what it is, and you're able to take that moment, grab it, take every thought, captive, unpick what that might be, get specific with God. There's a sense of frustration or anxiety, this fear in me, and take it to him and just take a couple of minutes and say, what is it? What are the things that are really sitting behind that and move on from a general sense of fear to knowing specifically what it is. So we can bring it to the king of kings.
We can look at his word and see what it says.
And sin is another peace shaker. I know in my life, when I do things I shouldn't, when I say things I shouldn't, perhaps when I don't do something I should have done, it's a blocker. It's a peace shaker. I feel not at ease in dis ease.
Father, may we all have that consciousness and that holy spirit conviction to recognize the peace shaker, the sin in our lives that we have to bring to you. And that doesn't mean it's a peace shaker forever. We all know we can then take it to God and repent and move on from it, turn 180 degrees and walk free. But it is these three things. Busyness, fear, sin are all things that shake our peace. But peace is a gift, and it's a guard. It's something that's given freely. But the thing about gifts is, even if you've got the money in the bank account, even if you've got the present in front of you, it's our job to unwrap, to unpack the gift that's been given, we've got to go and open it. And that's why I loved some of the words we used in praise and worship this morning. Casting, grabbing, taking back active words.
Because this process of receiving the gift of peace that God has freely given is something that we have to access. Let's go to John 14. Yeah. I'm leaving you with a gift, a peace of mind and of heart. And the peace I give is a gift that the world cannot give. So don't be troubled and don't be afraid.
We unpack this gift through reading, reading the word, meditating on it, repenting, forgiving, speaking with others, gathering those around us.
We need to put ourselves in environments where we're able to receive his gift of peace, because others around us are doing the same.
So peace is a gift. It's also a guard.
I love this scripture. I find myself praying this scripture over myself and other people more than many, many others. The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding. It's beyond our understanding so many times when I'm there, and I need to pray for someone who's facing something that I just don't know how to handle.
This is the scripture I go to because it's beyond my understanding how God can step in, in that situation and be peace. It's beyond my comprehension. There's people facing challenges in this room right now, and I can't comprehend how you can have peace in that circumstance, but I know you can.
I don't know how you can have a guarded heart and a guarded mind in that situation, but I know you can.
The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and guard your minds through Christ Jesus.
So in order to beat these peace shakers, we've got to be a people who are peace takers. Let's just say that. Say, I'm a peace taker.
Go on. You can do better than that. Go on. I'm a peace taker. Cool. We're going to be peace takers today. Unwrapping that gift, accepting the guard. Let's look at two scriptural examples. Mark four. So, here we go. Jesus has been preaching. It's been busy. It's been dusty. He's probably exhausted. His disciples are around him, and they get on the boat, and they go to the other side. Now, when they had left the multitude, they took him along in the boat as he was, and other little boats were also with him. But then a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat so that it was already filling.
I think this is a really interesting picture about peace, because boats are fine until water gets on the inside, right? In our lives, we can go through storms and challenge and critique and problems as long as it's on the outside, as long as we're able to rise above it. But as soon as that gets on the inside of us, there's a challenge. And we see here the boat that Jesus is in is already filling with water in a great windstorm that's come up on that sea.
So easy to read these few sentences and not really understand the challenge that they were in. The problem they were in. Those that were around would have been people who've been out on that sea, on that lake many times, and yet they were fearful. But he was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.
He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. Let's go to another scripture. Let's go to Daniel three.
Many, many of you have been in church for many years. Will know this inside out. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego being challenged by King Nebuchadnezzar to bow down before this altar.
And he said, is it true that you refuse to serve my gods or to worship the gold statue I have set up? I will give you one more chance to bow down and worship the statue I have made when you hear the sound of the musical instruments. But if you refuse, you'll be thrown immediately into the blazing furnace. And then what? God will be able to rescue you from my power.
Just like the boat Jesus was in, a fear of death could have come upon them. There was genuine challenge, genuine jeopardy ahead of them.
And if we go to the next part of this shadrach, meshach in Abednego replied, o nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God who we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power. And, your majesty, can we just say these next three words all together? But even if.
Oh, those are powerful words. We sometimes sing a song here. Even if. Even if. But even if he doesn't, we want to make it clear to you, your majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue that you've set up again. Faced with a problem that could end their lives, and yet there's just an internal resilience, an eternal peace. An internal no matter what comes. Even if. Even if we don't get rescued, even if. Even if both faced death. And yet they took on peace. They grabbed peace.
I do believe that busyness is one of these peace shakers. And to be peace takers, we've got to act like Shattrath, Meshach and Abednego. We've got to act like Jesus and grab hold of that peace. But I'm also aware that in the humdrum of our days, we've got to be people who grab peace in the middle of the day to day. And sometimes that's really difficult. Sometimes that's one of our challenges. We fill our days so much, we might have had our five minute quiet time, but then for the rest of the day, our mind is elsewhere. And I love this, this phrase from Brother Lawrence. Anyone read the practicing the presence of God? Just a beautiful book that's written off his writings and teachings. A monk in Paris.
The time of busyness does not with me differ from the time of prayer. And in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, he was working in the kitchen of that monastery, of that priory. While several people at the same time calling for different things.
I don't know about you, that feels very much like us at home with our kids, might feel like you at work, I don't know. But I love that phrase when several people at the same time calling for different things. I possess God in as great a tranquility as great a peace as if I was on my knees before the blessed Sacrament.
We've got to be people who are able to be here and there, people who are able to be here in the busyness, as the kids are shouting, as the boss is calling, as everything's going on our lives. And yet at the same time, there's with the king of kings and lord of lords in an attitude of peace.
It's one of those pictures we see through the scripture, those couplings we see through the scripture, where they almost feel like there should be a dichotomy, there should be opposite, but they're not. We have to be here and there while you're doing your homework, but also at peace.
Revising for that exam, but also at peace getting the kids to school late again on a Monday morning. But also at peace. Maybe I'm sharing too much.
So this morning, I want us to move beyond peace shakers. And I want to be people who grab hold, take hold, unwrap the gift that God has given us of peace, that we would be peace takers.
Maybe the worship team can come up. We're going to do a song just to respond to this. And then I'm going to close with one more thought.
And in our family, I love to find ways of communicating with our kids in memorable ways, things they will not forget. One of my prayers, often when we're leading worship here, is that even if they remember nothing about what else goes on, that one of those choruses, that one of those bridges in the songs we're singing that brings to life some core scripture, would be on our hearts and on our minds. So that even if people forget everything, that we'd walk into our days and just remember, cast my burdens. I'm just going to cast my burdens onto Jesus. If that's all you take away from today, I'm happy. You don't have to be listening to a word I say. If that rings in your ears, when you're burdened, when you're weighed down by what's in front of you. So with our kids, I like to find little memorable tricks to try and help them learn things. Don't tell them this afterwards, because they'll be very embarrassed. But, David, before we go into the song, can you play that little bassline?
The bass line. Can you go on? What have you got for us?
I told Sanny that I'd probably wear my hammer pants if I was going to be doing this.
There we go.
Can't touch this. There we go. Okay, that's enough. That's enough. That's enough. I'm not going to do the rap. But seriously, we use this in our family, I tell you, in our family, if our kids are walking into school fearful something's going on, I just hum that. Go on, David. Just that line. Oh, he's gone past it again. You know, I don't want to sing it.
Can't touch this.
Can I touch this?
Enough. That's enough.
I'm not cool enough to bring any more of that song. The great philosopher Mc Hammer. But we just use that one line. Just sing that one line. I don't care if that's the only thing you remember from this morning as you walk into your day.
That's how I remind my kids to be peace takers.
Whatever they're concerned about, whatever you're walking into tomorrow.
It can't touch you. It can't touch you. It can't touch your inner peace. It can't touch what's going on in your mind.
Don't let the water get into the boat.
It can't touch this.
The worship team were a bit surprised by that because they prepared a different song. But now we'll sing the different song. What I'd love to do, I'd love us just to respond for a moment before I talk about peacemakers.
The team are going to sing a song. Peace, be still.
Feel free to sit. Feel free to stand.
If there's a situation in your life that you see as disturbing that peace, I'd love you just to give it to him. As we sing this close in one, two. Let's stand to our feet and let's sing this out.
[00:24:49] Speaker B: I don't want to be afraid. Every time I face the ways.
I don't want to be afraid.
I don't want to be afraid.
I don't want to fear the storm. Just because I hear it roar.
I don't want to fear the storm.
I don't want to fear the storm.
[00:25:17] Speaker C: Kiss me still, say the word and I will set my feet upon the sea. Till I'm dancing in the deep.
Peace, be still, you are here, so it is. Well, even when my eyes can see, I will trust the voice that speak.
[00:25:48] Speaker B: I'm not gonna be afraid. Cause these waves are only waves.
I'm not gonna be afraid.
I'm not gonna be afraid.
I'm not gonna fear the storm. You are greater than it's wrong.
I'm not gonna fear the storm.
[00:26:11] Speaker C: Oh, I'm not gonna fear it all.
Peace be still in the world. And I will set my feet upon the sea till I dance in the deep.
Peace, be still, you are here. So it is well, even when my eyes can see I will trust the voice I see.
Peace, peace over me.
[00:27:09] Speaker B: Let faith rise up. O heart, believe.
Let faith rise up in me.
Let faith rise up, oh yes, let's.
[00:27:28] Speaker A: Let it rise up let's lift our voices and sing it out let faith.
[00:27:37] Speaker C: Rise up, oh I believe.
Let faith rise up in me.
Let faith rise up, oh heart, believe.
Let faith rise up in me.
Be still in the world and I will set my feet upon the sea. Till I'm dancing in the deep.
Be still, you are here. So it is well, even when my eyes can see I will trust the voice I see.
[00:28:35] Speaker A: Me.
Let's just take a moment here before we move on.
If you're in a situation where you're grabbing hold of, you want to unwrap that piece, you want someone just to pray for you as we do that, just lift your hands. Someone next to you is just going to put a hand on your shoulder. There's a whole bunch of hands down here, a few in the middle, some of the back, some in the middle over here. There are situations in this room that we need to rise up against with peace.
Before we go on, let's pray for the peace that passes all understanding to guard our hearts and guard our minds in Christ Jesus.
We've got a precious family here who I know are facing some challenges.
Martin and Jill, maybe you can pray for them. Mike and Lois, you know their situation.
Whatever you're facing, be peace takers this morning, grab hold of the gift that God's given, the free gift. Let's unwrap it this morning.
And while we're just praying, the worship team are just going to continue seeing that tag. But pray for those around you.
Let faith rise.
Let faith rise up.
Let it rise.
In hearts that are overwhelmed where anxiety is ruling may the peace of Christ rule.
[00:30:48] Speaker B: Let faith rise up.
[00:30:51] Speaker A: Let it rise.
Let it rise.
Whatever the situation, bring it to the king of kings.
[00:31:09] Speaker C: Rise up, oh believe.
Let faith rise up in me.
Let faith rise up, oh heart believe.
Let faith rise up in me.
Let faith rise up o high believe.
[00:31:40] Speaker A: Let it rise.
[00:31:42] Speaker C: Rise up in me.
Peace, be still. Say the word and I will set my feet upon the sea when I dance within the deep.
Peace, be still. You are here, so it is well, even when my eyes can see I will trust the voice I see.
Peace over me.
[00:32:43] Speaker A: Whatever the situation, let faith rise.
Let it rise.
That mustard seed of faith, he's still on the throne.
I remember for the first time in years this morning that famous poem by Rudyard Kipling. If some of us might have learned it in school.
He wasn't a Christian. Well, I think he, you know, had a journey of faith through his life. But these words. If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you, if you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but also take account for their doubting, too, whatever you're facing. If.
If you can dream and not make dreams your master, you can think and not make thoughts your aim. If you can meet with triumph and disaster and treat those two impostors just the same, I believe that speaks to our hearts and minds. This morning you might be at the top of the mountain or the depths of the valley, but neither of those two things should disturb the peace of Christ.
Amen.
Amen. Worship team feel free to continue praying. Playing let's take our seats and let's look at one final thing before we end today and leap out into the sunshine.
Can you turn to the person next to you and say, it's not about you.
It's not about you.
Everything we've talked about this morning could be considered pretty introspective about the challenges you're facing, but it's not just about you, because we see this amazing scripture in Matthew five. Blessed are the peace makers, for they shall be called children of God. Blessed are the peacemakers.
We're not just avoiding the peace shakers. We're not just taking the peace he's given us, but we are called this morning to be peaceful makers. In fact, if we load that up in the amplified, the blessed word is spiritually calm with life, joy in God's favor.
Blessed are the peacemakers, the makers and maintainers of peace that's active. There's stuff to be done in your situation and context, for they shall be called the children of God.
Let's just go back to those two scriptures. I went to mark four. Jesus is asleep in the boat. But then if we go back one to mark four, no, forward, a few to mark. There we go. They awoke him, and he said to them, teacher, they said to him, teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? And he arose and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, peace, be still.
This is now not just Jesus as a peace taker in the midst of the storm, fast asleep, he's now standing up and commanding, peace, be still. And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. And he said to them, why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith? Let faith rise in this place. And they feared exceedingly and said to one another, who can this be that even the wind and sea obey him? Peace be still. If we then go on to Daniel three, we go forwards. The next verses after Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego have said, even if. Even if we're not going to bow. Verse 27, not our hair on their head was singed and their clothing was not scorched. They did not even smell of smoke.
That verse is really meaningful to me.
Al, you remember when we prayed that I was in all kinds of challenge at work, all kinds of accusations, all kinds of financial difficulty. And Al grabbed me and prayed, you're kind of come out of this, and there's not going to even be a smell of smoke in that situation. I thought that was impossible.
It would have to be a miracle that my reputation would not be tarnished for decades as a result of what was happening. That wasn't really our fault.
And I prayed that, and I grabbed hold of that.
And no one we work with now has got any memory of that.
They didn't even smell of smoke. There's some people here today. You're facing a challenge and you're thinking it's going to be around forever. But you're walking out and you won't even smell of the challenge you're in right now. There's another in the fire, another standing with you.
They defied the king's command and were willing to die rather than serve or worship any God except their own. And here's the kicker. Nebuchadnezzar then says, there is no other God who can rescue like this than the king. Promoted Shadrach, meshach and Abednego to even higher positions.
They weren't just peace takers. They then became peacemakers responsible in their land.
I've already told you once with that little can't touch this ring that I try and find ways of communicating with our kids that they can remember. And another is a picture from Covey's book, seven habits of highly effective people. He has these three circles. See a couple of people nodding. You know, the three circles of concern, and often a conversation in our home is that there are three circles we face. There's this really big circle. It's the circle of concern we can't control. We can't influence it. It's what someone said about them, or it's what the teacher might do or the homework that might be set and in that context, we've just got to be peace takers. There's nothing we can do.
We've got to allow God to take care of it and just be a peace, take a. Keep ourselves still. There's a smaller circle, which is this circle of influence. Our jobs should be, through our lives to make that circle as large as possible. Because the circle of influence we can't control. But it's the friends we choose. It's the way we choose to have conversations. It's the direction of our lives. We influence it. We can't control it, but we influence it. We're starting to step into being peacemakers in our worlds. And then there's this small circle, the things we really can control, how we react and respond in anger or in love, whether we join in with the bullying or whether we stand up to it.
And so we've got these elements of our lives where we've got to understand in some areas, we've just got to be peace takers and move on. In some areas, we've got to be peacemakers and stand up and have influence. Influence.
So why do more christians not have more peace?
Lyanna's response to me in that car journey was, I don't want you to be productive. I just want to be with you.
Isaiah 26 three says, you will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you whose thoughts are fixed. Again, it's something we get to do. It's something we can do.
It's something we can put into our diaries. It's something we can put into rhythms and habits in our lives whose thoughts are fixed.
We're going to pray in a moment, as we finish, for anyone in this place who senses a cause, a nudge, to be a peacemaker in the circumstance you're in, I don't know what that might look like for you. It might be there's someone at work who's always left out or shunned. Might be someone at university who's always on their own. It might be someone in this congregation who's standing alone.
It might be a situation where there's argument and strife and you can speak in with love.
We're going to pray in a moment for those who sense that responsibility to be peace makers.
But before we do that, every Sunday, we pray for anybody in the building who wants to receive his gift of life and his gift of peace for the first time. It's really interesting. In the New Testament, we hear Jesus three or four times use this phrase, peace be with you. But what's really interesting is he only uses that after the crucifixion and the resurrection, never before.
Peace be with you.
I don't know in your language what the word peace is, but in many, many orthodox Christianities in Romania we say, pace, peace. Peace be with you.
It was only used by Jesus after he defeated sin, death, the grave.
Let's just bow our heads for a moment.
If, as I'm speaking, you're hearing and you're recognizing that what we're talking about this morning first requires that reconciliation with the king of kings and lord of lords and you don't feel reconciled right now, you recognise that the peace that you yearn for, that you don't have, is because you're not reconciled with the king of kings.
And just stick your hand up, we're just gonna pray for you.
Is there anyone here today?
There's one hand there at the back on the side. Anyone else?
Another hand at the back there.
We're just gonna pray for the reconciliation. Reconciliation with Father God, Father, these two precious people. Anyone else? I haven't seen.
We thank you in Jesus name for your peace that passes all understanding this morning. This afternoon, we pray that they would know the prince of peace, the one who is the peace giver.
It's a church. Those of you who are around us, put their hand up. Let's just make sure we gather around them. Maybe just pop your hand up again.
Yeah. Just someone here. Lovely love to pray for you at the end as well, if you'd like to.
Okay, before we finish, is there anyone here who feels a renewed nudge to be a peacemaker? Is there any of us who want to walk out of this place and not just be passive, not just be accepting of the context around us, but be peacemakers?
It's awesome. There's a few of us here. Let's just all stand.
Let's put our hand up. If you want to just pray with me right now.
Awesome. Father, I pray for every single person who's responding here to be a peacemaker.
We know that part of the kingdom of God is a kingdom of peace and we want to be your agents of peace in our world. On the playground, in the boardroom, on the school run, around the dining table. We want to be agents of peace, carriers of your presence. So, Father, in Jesus name, every person who is hearing that call to be a peacemaker, a maker and maintainer of the peace of Christ, we ask for your wisdom. We ask for your courage. Father, where there is injustice, we thank you that there would be peacemakers who speak against injustice. Us in this congregation who come alongside those who are unfairly treated and be peacemakers.
Holy Spirit, show us as we walk out of our Sunday and into our Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and beyond those areas where we can stop being passive and start being active, joining hand in hand with you, the princess of peace.
And let's let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts because we are called to peace.
Amen.
