Grace, peace, and mercy, be with you from God our Father, and Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. I’m sure you have noticed that this is how I begin every one of my sermons. Have you ever wondered why? Why do I say that and where did I get it from? The Epistles! All the letters that Paul wrote to the Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and the 1 & 2 Thessalonians, Paul would greet them with this, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus also sent out His disciples with the instructions that before they would enter a household, they were to offer their peace and if it did not come back to them, they were to shake the dust off their feet and move on. Peace was just as important back then as it is today.
We as human beings want peace in our lives. It is necessary for our heart and soul to survive. There are many different ways that we search to find the peace we need in our lives. Some go on long walks out in nature, some bake, oil painting, drawing, gardening, and the list goes on. There are hundreds of different ways out there to find the peace that we desperately need. Some people can search their whole life and never find that perfect peace. Peace is easily found. Easily attainable. The only long lasting and true peace comes from God our Father. His arms are always open to welcome us into the only peace that we will ever need. The peace of knowing that we are accepted. Loved beyond measure, and that through the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ, all our sins have been forgiven. We have been given a new chance, a new life to live in total peace knowing that we have been given the greatest gift of all. Forgiveness, salvation, and peace knowing that we have been given eternal life. This peace surpasses all of the other peace that we find in the world today. The peace we find when we hold a loved one or a speck of beauty in our world. That peace is fleeting and temporary. The peace we receive from God is permanent and always with us. Let us accept this peace and share with all that we meet.
+ Pastor Sue Ellen