Blessed are the Peacemakers....It's a Family Trait!

We have all, at one time or another, seen one of those silly sitcoms that has two siblings, two best friends or whatever, clammed up, refusing to talk to the other party because of what he or she did. But, when the hero or heroine of the sitcom gets them in the same room so that they can begin the complicated process of reconciliation...NO ONE CAN REMEMBER WHAT STARTED THE CONFLICT IN THE FIRST PLACE.

I think I can speak to the root cause of almost every conflict that mankind has ever known...THE PRIDE OF MAN! It seems that when anyone calls us on the carpet, smudges or soils our reputation or does anything that makes us look less than "perfect"; well, conflict is inevitable!

But it doesn't have to be...not if we seek to be peacemakers, as the sons of God should be. We need to know and understand that deep down, we were created for fellowship...both with our Creator and with each other. And it is conflict that makes that fellowship IMPOSSIBLE!

We cannot avoid conflict; even if we are not the instigator, conflict will come looking for us. Some people are by nature, confrontational; while others, steer clear of any such situation and try to avoid confrontation at all cost. Neither of these approaches make for peaceful living or expanding fellowship.

Jesus called out to those gathered on that hill to be peacemakers...to seek to diffuse any type of volatile entanglement and pursue a relationship of integrity and abundant grace...for grace shown is grace received. If we can show others grace when they say or do despicable things to us; give them the benefit of the doubt when we are wronged or as Christ urged us to do later in Scripture, "to bless those that persecute us and say all manner of evil against us"; well, we are holding our pride down and allowing the Holy Spirit to well up inside of us as a true and bona fide peacemaker. It is true that someone who can "turn the other cheek" is one that is learning to master PRIDE and in so doing, he is a peacemaker that is more concerned with his King's reputation than he is with his own.

And speaking of reputation, there is the promise of God for the peacemaker...Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the SONS OF GOD. Think about that for just a minute...if you are a true son (or daughter) of the Most High, you share the same last name and the same DNA. You are an ambassador for your Father and for all He represents to this lost and dying world...so if you share His name, you can ill afford to blemish that good name by creating or being involved in conflict, whether deemed righteous or not! You must be a PEACEMAKER and live up to the family name...a name above all names that will one day be uttered on the lips of all who have EVER lived...the sweet name of Jesus.

So, be the son of God that you have been called to be and eliminate conflict from your life, as well as your vocabulary. Speak only words that offer encouragement, filled with love, grace and good intentions; for that is your honorable and peaceful response when conflict is brewing. Whenever you do this,

YOU MAKE YOUR FATHER PROUD...AND HE'S THE ONE THAT KNOWS HOW TO HANDLE PRIDE...FOR HE IS THE ONE THAT DESERVES ALL THE GLORY!

Seeking His peace...loving the troublemakers as a son of God,

WPQ