Peace And Goodwill To All Men

'And the angel said unto them, "Fear not: for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will toward men."  Luke 2:10,11 and 13,14 (KJV)

Merry and Blessed Christmas! 

The first Christmas greetings under the night sky of Bethlehem was proclaimed by the angel and multitude of the heavenly host to the shepherds. There were two messages

• The birth of Jesus Christ, long awaited and a fulfillment of prophecies, 

'For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulders. And He shall be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.' Isaiah 9:6-7

• The prayer and expectation of Peace on Earth. Jesus was declared the Prince of Peace.

Christians rejoice at the coming of Jesus, our Saviour who forgave our sins and ushered us into a new and living relationship with God. For more than two thousand years Christians enjoy this reality. But the promise of peace appears elusive; many lament the fact that peace on earth is never experienced even since the birth of Christ. 

Let me share my journey in understanding this Peace.

The first is Elusive Peace. This was most sarcastically commented by this rendition of Silent Night by Simon and Garfunkel over the Seven o'Clock News read by Charles O'Donnell.

That album was released in the 1966, things have not changed. Since then there has not been a Christmas in which there is no war, crisis or conflict somewhere in this world. This Christmas the war in Ukraine rages on and there will be no Christmas truce this time. Is Christmas and its promise of peace on earth good will among men irrelevant today?

The second is Inner Peace. How can we find peace in the midst of dismal circumstances? If peace cannot be found externally, can it be found within us? Having peace within, perhaps we can be at peace with others. A Chinese poem reads,

If there is a light in the soul there will be beauty in the person,

If there is beauty in the person there will be harmony in the house,

If there is harmony in the house there will be order in the nation,

If there is order in the nation, there will be peace in the world.

"Let There Be Peace on Earth" is a song written by Jill Jackson-Miller and Sy Miller in 1955. Jackson-Miller, had been suicidal after the failure of her marriage, she wrote the song after discovering what she called the "life-saving joy of God's peace and unconditional love." The main message is in the refrain, 'Let peace begin with me.' 

The third is Heavenly Peace. There is another kind of peace, not coming from within but peace from above, transcendental peace. This is the peace offered by Christmas, Jesus said,

'Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.' John 14:27

Saint Paul described this as a peace which passed all understanding,

 'And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.' Philippians 4:7

This was the peace Saint Francis understood when he prayed 'Make me an instrument of thy peace.' The peace comes from God and if we can become just instruments, conduits of this peace, there is a chance for peace and good will among men.

Enjoy this Christmas carol, Silent Night. 

Merry Christmas! May the Light of Jesus Christ be the light in your souls!

Lionel

A Time for Peace

Sleep in Heavenly Peace

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God" Matthew 5:9

In the late 1960s, Simon and Garfunkel made a recording of 'Silent Night' superimposed over the typical 7 o’clock news over the US TV channels. One cannot miss the sarcasm, sleeping in heavenly peace at such times?

Things have not changed. On the 16 Dec 2012 the world woke up to the headline news, 'Gunman kills 26 in US elementary school massacre'. What is so disturbing is that the victims included 20 five-year old children. On the 28 Oct 2018 a shooting in a Jewish Synagogue in Pittsburgh killed 11 victims while they were worshiping. One year earlier in Las Vegas 59 were shot dead and more than 500 injured after a gunman using automatic weapons fired on the crowd at a country music festival. On the 24 Dec 2019 protesters in Hong Kong who held a Silent Night protest march clashed violently with the police. This Christmas, the Covid-19 variant, Omicron, threatens the world.

We may cynically proclaim the irrelevancy of Christmas and its message of peace and goodwill among men.

The cornerstone of the United Nations quotes from Micah 4:3, 'They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nations shall not lift up sword against nations, neither shall they learn war any more.' 

But can peace can be achieved between nations when it cannot be achieved between individuals? Can peace between individuals be achieved when it is not found within a person?

A Chinese proverb reads

'If there there is a light in the soul,

There will be beauty in the person,

If there is beauty in the person,

There will be harmony in the house.

If there is harmony in the house,

There will be order in the nation,

If there is order in the nation,

There will be peace in the world.

Is there light at the end of this dark tunnel? 

 

'You (God) will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, is the Rock eternal.' Isaiah 26:3-4 

An individual at peace with God, is at peace with himself and with others. That peace frees us from fear and removes the barbs of our anxieties. This personal peace bring the most satisfaction, the greatest relief and the deepest comfort. There will be tranquility within. 

'The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever.' Isaiah 32:17. 

In World War I, a Christmas Truce of 1914 was declared and the carol 'Silent Night' was sung. Along the war front, German and Allied troops downed their weapons and reached out their hands toward each other and exchanged Christmas greetings.

Let's make peace with each other, for God has given us this Benediction, His blessing of peace 

'The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up the light of His countenance upon you and give you peace." Numbers 6:24-26

Merry Christmas Everybody!

Lionel

Updated article. 1st Published 17 Dec 2007

Sleep Easy At Night

 

Sleeping Soundly

 'When you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.' Proverbs 3:24 

Having difficulty with sleeping? It seems that getting a good sleep preoccupies health conscious people these days. The general advice is to get about 7-9 hours of good sleep at night. However many people, stressed by the pressures of modern day living, hardly get the sleep they need. 

The Singapore Ministry of Health's web portal, Health Hub, noted that Singapore is the 3rd most sleep deprived city, after Tokyo and Seoul, in a study of 43 cities. The Singaporeans' lack of sleep is partly due to a culture of working long hours and that this drive may impinge on our ability to get good sleep. 

Singaporeans trade sleep for more work, thinking that the wealth we can bring with more work will allow us to live life fully with great satisfaction. Never mind if we lose sleep. Some even see the ability to function with less sleep as a badge of honour. The MOH Health Hub warns that 'if you think that you are doing fine with less sleep, you are probably wrong. And if you work in a profession where it's important to be able to judge your level of functioning, this can be a big problem.' 

Sleep affects decisions but the reverse is also true, decisions affects sleep. This is what the Bible says in Proverbs 3:21-24 

 'Preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight; they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck. Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble; when you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.' 

No one can guarantee that we will make good decisions all the time. The trick is to try to make those decisions in the will of God. Then peace of mind will come, when we learn to exercise sound judgement using the wisdom God provides.

This is the same observation and advice that St Paul gave in Philippians 4:6-7:

'Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.' 

Notice that St Paul spoke not only of peace of mind but also the peace of heart. This is transcendental peace, a peace that comes from above, a peace that only Jesus can give.

'Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid.' John 14:27 

There is a dramatic account of a storm on the Lake of Galilee in the Gospel of Mark,

'Late that day, He said to them, "Let's go across to the other side." They took Him in a boat. A huge storm came up. Waves poured into the boat, threatening to sink it. And Jesus was in the stern, head on a pillow, sleeping! They roused him, saying, "Teacher is it nothing to you that we are going down?" Awake now, He told the wind to pipe down and said to the sea, "Quiet! Settle down!" The wind ran out of breath; the sea became smooth as glass. Jesus reprimanded the disciples:  "Why are you such cowards? Don't you have any faith at all?" They were in absolute awe, staggered. "Who is this, anyway?" they asked. "Wind and sea at His beck and call!" Mark 4:35-41 (The Message)

Sleep in the midst of a storm? How is that possible? It is possible with the transcendental peace that Jesus gives. Then we will be  

• At Peace with God
• At peace with ourselves
• At peace with othaers 

This is the same message brought to us by the Christmas carol, Silent Night with its gentle refrain 'Sleep in Heavenly Peace.'

Sleep Well! 

Lionel