A little peace please!

All of us could use a little peace.  We live in a time in history when there is very little peace - not the kind that means free from war - but interior peace, with God and with ourselves. There are so many enticements, projects, demands on our life that contribute to our lack of peace.  In today’s Gospel Jesus gives us the answer.  Jesus said to his disciples: "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid." (Jn 14:27-31)

Peace is the fruit of holiness.  The closer we get to the Lord, the deeper our relationship, the greater our peace.  The further we get from Him the more anxious and out of peace we become.  Because of the work I do for the community, I have to spend some time each day at the computer. Yesterday I deleted from my Favorites list all secular news sources. I read some stories on them yesterday that broke my heart - man's inhumanity to man - news items that I couldn't believe! As I went to Evening Prayer those stories bombarded my thoughts and I had a hard time concentrating on God. So, I tried to take all of these situations and place them before Him in the tabernacle. I realized that if I want God's peace in my heart I need to take some steps to protect the peace that the Lord has given me.  Peace is a gift and fruit of the Holy Spirit.    (I have deleted my FACEBOOK page and I am not tweeting on Twitter!)

While we can’t walk away from our responsibilities, and I am sure they are many, we CAN walk closer to the Lord. He not only graces us with His peace – He IS our peace!  Peace be with you!