Peace Be With You
He did not speak peace to a gentle sea but to wild waves and seasick disciples.
He did not speak peace to a life on track but to an unwed teen who would soon birth God.
He did not speak peace to courageous believers but to hiding men who thought Christ was a ghost.
Peace, it seems, is heard the loudest in the places we think it shouldn't belong.
So in this year of chaos and loss, may the peace of Christ ring loud in your ears
and echo its comfort in the depths of your heart.
The Prince of Peace has come.
Mary & the Power of Peace
Click on the gallery below for a contemplative reading from Luke 1:26-38 (NIV)
Songs of Peace
Click on the songs below for songs of peace. May these songs land softly.
Poems of Peace
Poems of peace by Wendell Berry and Mary Oliver
"The Peace of Wild Things"
by Wendell Berry
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s
lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
"I Worried"
by Mary Oliver
I worried a lot. Will the garden grow, will the rivers
flow in the right direction, will the earth turn
as it was taught, and if not how shall
I correct it?
Was I right, was I wrong, will I be forgiven,
can I do better?
Will I ever be able to sing, even the sparrows
can do it and I am, well,
hopeless.
Is my eyesight fading or am I just imagining it,
am I going to get rheumatism,
lockjaw, dementia?
Finally, I saw that worrying had come to nothing.
And gave it up. And took my old body
and went out into the morning,
and sang.
Art & Photography for Peace
Click on the gallery below to dive into images - ancient & modern - of Mary, hope, light, and darkness.
Prayers of Peace
Ancient prayers. Breath prayers. Scripture prayers. Lean on these or create your own.
O Wisdom, Lord and Ruler, Root of Jesse, Key of David, Rising Sun, King of the Nations, Emmanuel, Come, Lord Jesus.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love...
O God, grant me serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can and wisdom to know the difference; living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardships as a pathway to peace; taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that You will make all things right if I surrender to Your will; so that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with You forever in the next.
O Lord, open my eyes that I may see the needs of others Open my ears that I may hear their cries; Open my heart so that they need not be without succor; Let me not be afraid to defend the weak because of the anger of the strong, Nor afraid to defend the poor because of the anger of the rich. Show me where love and hope and faith are needed, And use me to bring them to those places. And so open my eyes and my ears That I may this coming day be able to do some work of peace for thee. (Alan Paton)
Inhale: "May it be to me" Exhale: "according to Your word."
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” -John 14:27
“In peace I will lie down and sleep, for You alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety”
"The Peace of Wild Things" When despair grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be, I go and lie down where the wood drake rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds. I come into the peace of wild things who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief.
Journal Prompts
Use them all, or only a few, or none at all.
Notice which ones draw you. Notice which ones repel you. Create your own. Draw. Discuss. Play.
May these prompts serve as a springboard.
01.
Longings.
Where in your life would you like to see peace kindled?
02.
Resistance.
Does anything in you resist peace? Consider the push-back.
03.
Vulnerability.
Is there anything you would like to receive from Jesus before embracing peace?
04.
History.
When have you received a peace that passes understanding?
05.
Love.
How does God interact with your turbulence? Consider His face, and His delight in you.