Home!

Arrived home yesterday afternoon with all travel arrangements going as planned. Suffering from a little jet lag this morning but so much to be thankful for: safety while we traveled, great hosts, the opportunity to visit the Holy Land, to hear from many and to personally witness what it is like to live in a land where there is so much hated and conflict, to be able to live in a land which is quite peaceful . . . And yet this morning I am struggling more than ever to answer the question "what does it mean to be a peacemaker?" for Jesus said "Blessed are the peacemakers for they are the sons (and daughters) of God." And as I was traveling home I thought to myself that just maybe we are expecting too much. Can peoples, governments, nations that don't have Christ be changed? Real transformation in people's lives only comes through Jesus and the Holy Spirit. And it starts within me/us. The only one I can really change is myself. Real peace starts within myself and within the community which I am most directly connected with; my family, my church family, the community I reside in. Real and lasting peace only comes through Christ, "the Prince of Peace."

Sharing the Love and Peace of Christ in our own community and around the world,
Dick