THE MISSING PEACE Unlock and Sustain Peace in Your Daily LifeSample

Day 3:

E-PHESIANS

UNITY OF SPIRIT

“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

Ephesians 4:1-3

Apparently, a key element for maintaining optimal levels of peace in our lives involves maintaining unity, patience, and love among humanity. Paul’s letter to the church at Ephesus emphasizes that ‘walking in a manner worthy of our calling’ is our mandate as believers. This might confirm what we suspected all along. Our peace accrues compounding interest as we walk in humility, gentleness, and patience. These qualities are counter intuitive to my flesh and isn’t exactly music to my prideful, impatient ears. It’s interesting that, in an involuntary effort to clash with our spirit, our flesh can prevent the flourishing of the invaluable spiritual fruits articulated in Paul’s letter.

We live in a world where division has escalated to greater heights than we’ve ever seen (at least in the last 50 years). Christians or non-Christians alike, the human condition seems tormented and dissatisfied with existence in its own skin. Turmoil within our cultural and political climates are just manifestations of a people with discontented, unfulfilled hearts lacking peace. Procurement of true joy and peace is an inside job. As stated in the passage from Ephesians, we are called to be eager in our effort to maintain unity in the bond of peace. Sadly, there is plenty of evidence proving that our society is more eager to selfishly satisfy our own desires at the expense of those who disagree with, or oppose, our viewpoint or methodology. This leaves a sizable chasm between the peace God intended and the vacancy in our hearts where peace was meant to reside.

To quote the great Theologian of the 1900’s, Jerry McGuire, “help me help you.” I’m here to confidently bolster your confidence in knowing that this is an ongoing process and none of us get it right 100% of the time. That’s why the real theologians call it progressive sanctification. We are works in progress that operate in the leniency of God’s grace, but also oppose taking liberties of license to perpetually fail in this area. Grace isn’t permission to remain a knucklehead. The good news is that we have countless Bible verses in this topic that serve as a tangible scorecard that measures our progress. In a world of irritability and anxiety, it’s time we take inventory of our personal interactions and daily dialogue. There might be a common denominator staring back at us in the mirror.