Every week when we gather for worship at Chapel by the Lake we pray for the needs of our world, nation, community and church. It is part of our response to the Word of God, one way we try to live out the Gospel, one way we express our love for our neighbors. We believe in prayer and believe through prayer. Christian author Richard J. Foster wrote “prayer is the serious business of the Church, the first and best business it renders for the world.” Sometimes the most valuable thing we can do is pray.
Every week we pray for peace. Peace in Ukraine and Russia. Peace in Gaza, Palestine and Israel. Peace in South Sudan. Peace in our cities and communities. Sometimes we are satisfied when peace looks like the fighting has stopped and the weapons of war are silent, so we move on to the next conflict. One of my practices in writing these prayers for Sunday worship is to read the BBC as they often have the best information on global conflicts.
When Christians talk about Jesus’ beatitude regarding peacemakers and peacemaking, the conversation often turns to world affairs, geo-political, ethnic and cultural conflicts. When I was young I remember hippies carrying peace signs in protest of the Vietnam war. I thought that was what was meant by peace.
Conflicts are inevitable, and sometimes even good and necessary. Conflict can bring to the forefront important differences in values and purpose, and conflict can help bring unity of purpose and identity. It is often through conflict that relationships, especially marriage, find deeper expressions of commitment.
The Biblical book of James makes an interesting observation:
“What is causing the quarrels and fights among you?
Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you?
You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it.
You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them.
Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it.
And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong — you want only what will give you pleasure.”
— James 4:1-3
I spoke recently to a person who was in conflict with another person at work. The person had a crystal clear pathway to settle the conflict that focused on exactly what the other person did and how they should make amends. It was so simple! However, after hearing both people share their perspective one thing became crystal clear: it was not that simple!
I asked the person with the plan if he had considered how he may have contributed to the conflict, and he was offended by me even implying he had done something wrong. Even if he had not “done everything by the book,” the other person carried far more of the burden. The other person was the problem if they could only see it.
I know these kinds of conflicts arise every day, and most of the time we navigate through them to a place of peace where relationships are restored and sometimes even stronger.
I want to make an observation and ask a question. First, an observation. It appears to me that our nation is deeply divided and plagued by conflict. Almost every day we see and hear stories of violence inflicted on other people over social, racial and political differences, and sometimes it appears the news sources are fueling the violence and conflict. Here is my question: if we struggle to live at peace with our neighbors, coworkers and fellow citizens, do we have authority to speak about peace to anyone else?
The Bible anchors brokenness and conflict in one place: the human heart. The human heart is fatally infected with a disease the Bible calls sin. The Bible also offers one of the most inclusive statements about human beings by this: all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God. (Romans 3:23). Sin has infected everyone and everything. No one is perfect.
I close with one more teaching of Jesus:
“And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye
when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend,
‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.’”
— Matthew 7:3-5
I sometime wonder if we aren’t being a little hypocritical if we pray for and talk about peace in Ukraine, Gaza and other places when we struggle to be at peace at home. Are we focusing on the speck in the eyes of other peoples and nations while being blind to the log in our own?
I speak from personal experience when I say the one of the most difficult parts of peacemaking is seeing the log in my own eye. What is even more difficult is realizing that the very person who may be able to help me remove the log from my own eye is the one I believe has a speck in theirs.
My desire is that as we move into a season of thanksgiving, we are humble enough to consider our own frailties and brokenness and extend grace and mercy to everyone else.
The Rev. Tim Harrison is senior pastor at Chapel by the Lake. He and his wife Karen (also an ordained pastor) have been in ministry together for over 30 years. They served Presbyterian churches in Florida, Washington, New Jersey and Wisconsin.
