PEACE - A GIFT
19th Jun 2013
One Saturday morning we were having breakfast with several Japanese guests, when the phone rang and I found myself involved with a very difficult situation. It involved immigration authorities at Heathrow Airport with lots of questions and options to be considered. I prayed briefly over the phone and then resumed breakfast, first giving a short resume of what I had to deal with, and expected to carry on eating.
But at that moment, one of our Japanese guests, an older lady, burst into tears and exclaimed, “You have such peace, where does it come from? You have to deal with this very difficult situation, yet you have peace. I have watched you, I want peace.” Later that weekend I was able to explain that peace is only found in the person of Jesus - the Prince of Peace - and that He is the gift we need to receive.
The tradition of gift giving is well established in the Japanese culture, it would be extremely offensive to be given a gift and to refuse it, or even leave it unopened and not discover what it contained. This gave me the context to explain that Jesus is God’s wonderful gift to mankind; we simply need to receive Him and open the gift, part of which is the peace that Jesus alone can give. We can then release it into even the most challenging situation. His presence and perspective changes everything. Our visitors left after a few days, this lady hugged and kissed me, declaring, “I now have peace.”
Do you value the gift you have as a child of God? Have you lost the sense of being cared for by someone bigger, stronger, wiser and totally able to handle your situation?
Today, remember, Jesus’ parting gift to his disciples was peace. He told them not to be upset or distraught because He would not abandon them. Whatever they were going through He would be with them and in them with all that He is able to do.
Invite His peace to invade your situation today!
by Joyce Sibthorpe
