Peace

"For [Jesus] is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us." - Ephesians 2:14

Dear Friends in Christ -

It would be good if the Arizona shooting that cost six people their lives and seriously wounded Congresswoman Gabby Giffords brought a cessation political hostilities. But so far it hasn't. And my guess is that it won't. It could. But it won't. Unless . . .

There is one way to breach the dividing walls we have so expertly erected: trust.

Rational minds immediately put forward the argument: but we CAN'T trust those people. And rational minds are correct. 'Those people' can't trust us either. None of us is trustworthy. No, not one. We all do bad things, squander justice, compromise on truth, fail.

Trust is still the answer. We just have to pick someone to trust who is truly trustworthy. Someone who laid it all on the line. Someone who REALLY risked big to win big.

Whether people believe Jesus is Savior or prophet or teacher, the example of his life stands: he did what was right even when it infuriated those in power; he said the truth even when his popular support dropped. These examples may look like the opposite of peacemaking, but a true word spoken or an honest action taken is like a light that pierces through darkness or like a plumb line that reveals what straight looks like, even when we're standing on uneven ground.

Peace. We know what it looks like, smells like, feels like. We know it in our bones. We're called to follow Jesus into putting skin on it. Our skin. Now.

Faithfully,
Janet+