The Peace Piece

Writing about peace is very much like a dreaded homework assignment for me. I'm not a procrastinator by nature, this is just a difficult topic. I've been dealing a great deal with this issue from a very personal standpoint and it is still an area of struggle for me. It seems the very people I would like to share peace with are the very ones who I struggle with the most, and then I realized that fact is Scriptural, so I stepped back, took a deep breath, and decided this might be easier than I thought. Until the last couple of years, I really had no idea what true peace was, so at least I had very little to unlearn, but I knew what I was dealing with, was not peace! All I knew was I wanted to be a peace maker, because Y'hshuwah said, they are called the children of Elohim.

In researching the depth and definition of the fruits of the Spirit, I am also finding the Scriptural antonym. Fear is the opposite of Love, Warfaring opposes Joy, and Confusion is the antonym of Peace. I Corinthians 14:33 states it pretty simply. "For G-d is not the author of confusion, but of peace . . ." Surely we wouldn't choose confusion! Oh, but we do, over and over and over again. We even get confused about the definition of peace, as in peace keeping rather than peace making and sometimes, acceptance is making peace with the fact there is no resolution.

For some, confusion is more like stagnation, sort of like a little "fishing hole" of seclusion. As long as we hide in our little spot testing the water, we don't actually have to make a decision, but we can say we are thinking, contemplating; even. And perhaps we are, but the water doesn't move in those little fishing holes and lagoons. It can even get stagnate, if the fish don't keep it stirred. A lagoon isn't exactly a river dead end, but it has the flow of a cul de sac. It seems quiet and serene, but the serenity is due to isolated seclusion, not a peaceful flow. To be honest, I've tried to find peace that way.

Then there is the confusion that seems more like a whirlpool. You can litereally feel yourself feeling as if you're drowning. We all know someone that just doesn't even want to come up for air. It's like they take comfort in the confusion, even become a part of it and just like a whirlpool, creates a vacuum that sucks in everything within reach, people included. In the past, I've tried to make peace for others by helping, but to no avail. Peace is not ours to give. We cannot give what is not ours, and some people just flat enjoy their mess, which leads me to the next description of no peace.

There are also those who appear to believe they resolve confusion, by giving everyone else a piece of their mind. My thought on that matter is pretty succinct. Most folks that are ready always to "give a piece of their mind" can't really afford to keep piecing it out. I've been caught in that several times. I've found myself trying to fight the whirlpool effect with a "declaration of peace" which ends up sacrificing my peace of mind, one incident at a time, until I realize the declaration was one of war against confusion rather than seeking His peace, shalom, in the midst of the chaos.

The saddest thing I learned about peace in my discovery and search, was that it doesn't cause our enemies to be our friends. Sometimes we must simply make peace with the fact that we won't get along with everyone, and everyone doesn't want to get along with us. I am not called to cause peace, only to walk in the peace of YHWH. I can also assure you, once you make the determination to seek this fruit of the Spirit and to allow YHWH to cause this to grow in you, you'll be amazed at the circumstances that ensue. Serenity is pretty easy to maintain on a garden path . . .

We sing so many songs about peace that I think we become almost desensitized and certainly lacking in expectation of the true and full meaning of what this fruit could be in our lives. Just as having "the joy, joy, joy . . ." we can sing about "Peace Like a River . . ." It's nice to have those praise ditties in our heads and our hearts, if they keep us focused on those truths, but we can become immune or even numb to the words. As I think of peace like a river, I see it flowing, winding, gently moving, curving, adaptable, and yet powerful. A river is powerful enough to smooth the sharp rocks, carve a bed in the landscape of the area, provide water for trees and animals, an environment for aquatic life, and even rest, relaxation, and enjoyment for humans. With peace being so amazing and described so similarly to water, how do we so often feel in life, that we are drowning rather than being refreshed? I just happen to have come across the answer for that question.

The peace that passes all understanding is sometimes as gentle as a clear country stream and sometimes it is the torrent that sweeps away the confusion. On one occasion recorded, Y'hshuwah spoke and calmed the sea and of course we are all familiar with the account in Scripture in which YHWH just swept all the chaos away with a great big flood. Being a peacemaker is allowing the Spirit of YHWH to produce His peace in us, regardless of the method or the outcome.