Peace! Is it not one of our greatest desires? And isn’t it possible that our desire for peace is so deep within us precisely because it seems, at times, to be so far away? What we too often forget is that peace is not a given but the result of a way of living. To live this way is not easy, especially in an age that is so given over to self-concern and selfish desires like our own. It is not reasonable to think that peace is possible in a world driven by the noisy demands of competing egos.
To have peace in any relationship, be it personal, familial, societal, or global, one has to be able to “see” the world from different perspectives. This is hard enough, but it is even harder to look within and to sometimes admit to oneself that “I am wrong”. To be a peacemaker requires such inner self-reflection. But remember, too, that being a peacemaker does not mean that we are to be a “pushover.” Promoting the benefits of peace and keeping it requires us to be strong and courageous enough to identify and then to stand up for what is truly right and good, and to protect it, even at great cost. Ultimately, it is to advocate for and protect those who cannot do so for themselves.
Self-reflection is one of the most important duties we have as adult human beings. Over the years, I have found the Psalms to be a great resource for learning and practicing the benefits of self-reflection that lead to a deeper understanding of oneself in relationship to God and others. God is God. I am not. God is the source of the Peace that my heart most deeply desires. So praying the psalms is a genuinely important part of the practice of daily prayer. Let me use Psalm 34 as an example. I will be using verses 2-7 and 12-15 for this purpose.
“I will bless the Lord at all times, his praise always on my lips; in the Lord my soul shall make its boast. The humble shall hear and be glad” (vs. 2-3). If my eyes are on the Lord above all else, my natural response to His goodness, kindness, and mercy toward me will cause me to bless and praise Him with a profound thanksgiving at all times. It is in humble recognition that I can joyfully [boast] to all, “Glorify the Lord with me. Together let us praise his name” (v. 4). Why would I do this? Because, as the psalmist reports, in his own need, “I sought the Lord and he answered me; from all my terrors he set me free” (v. 5). To seek and to receive the forgiveness and the love of the Lord is to be set free from our fears. This, then, is the beginning of the peace that we seek.
Here the psalmist encourages us to, “Look towards him (the Lord) and be radiant; let your faces not be abashed” (v. 6). Again, the psalmist tells us why we can do this from his own experience: “This poor man called; the Lord heard him and rescued him from all his distress” (v. 7). Like the psalmist it is when we realize that God is the One that we can always count on in our most stressful times. No human being can give us the fullness of true peace. When we find, deepen, and continuously develop a relationship with the Lord, we begin to find peace. This is what the psalmist joyfully proclaims.
“Come, children, and hear me that I may teach you the fear of the Lord” (v. 12). The psalmist is fresh from the experience of being rescued and is eager to teach the “poor”, those who are defenseless, to trust in God alone. God is the source of our protection. “Fear of the Lord” is the proper sense of awe that comes from recognizing who God is and who we are in relation to God. It is this sense of awe that opens our hearts to see and to desire God’s love. It is out of this love that God has for us, and that we have for God, that we can truly love our neighbors. This love, then, is the power that brings about peace in all of our relationships.
What does this look like in our daily lives in terms of our own behavior? The psalmist again offers the proper question: “Who is he who longs for life and many days, to enjoy his prosperity?” (v. 13). And then offers us a great answer: It is the one who, “keeps [his] tongue from evil and [his] lips from speaking deceit” (v. 14). Lies and deceit are the chief causes of strife, misunderstanding, rage, violence, and division. Lies and deceit are the tools of evil. So, the psalmist tells us then to “Turn aside from evil and do good; seek and strive after peace” (v. 15).
It is a pure, good, and natural desire to want peace in our lives and in the world. But we must commit to being active, positive agents of that peace in our hearts, families, neighborhoods, and in the world. We must recognize and correct our tendencies to lie and to deceive. The most effective means to achieve the peace that we desire in our lives is to turn away from all that is evil, to desire and to practice what is truly good. It is in looking to God and his Word that I am more able to identify what is truly good, true, and beautiful. In desiring what God desires, I find true and lasting peace.
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