9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God. ~ Matthew 5:9 (NKJV)
By Bro. John L. Cash
I’m heartbroken over the latest school shooting, and I’m sure you are, too. I can’t get rid of the thought that 14 families are making trips to the hospital, and 17 families are making trips to the funeral home. May God help them all.We must be diligent to remember them in our prayers.
We’re living in a time much like when Noah lived; the Bible says “the earth was filled with violence.” (Genesis 6:11) In dark times like these, our only hope is found in the promise of our Saviour. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” (John 1:4,5)
Growing up in the 1960’s, I heard a lot of people talking about peace. Because we were involved in military conflicts, I guess back then I would have defined peace as “the absence of war.” 
But, I’m older now, and I understand that peace means so much more than that. Peace is the glue that holds everything together. It’s the beginning and end result of everything in life that is good. Peace is the loving arrangement of heart and community that makes all the other Christian virtues possible.
Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” Clearly, He’s telling us that peace isn’t something that just happens. Peace is something we have to make.
From my experience, peace doesn’t come frozen or in huge truckloads. It doesn’t come in a jar marked “instant” and you can’t pick it up at the drive-thru. Peace is a recipe made from scratch, and it’s homemade. It needs to be prepared in small batches, day by day, and moment by moment. It’s best served warm, to one person at a time.
The world around us is frantic, making threats, making policy, and making rhetoric. How wonderful it is to be part of the Church — making a difference, daily, as we strive to make peace.
Dr. John L. Cash is the “Country Preacher Dad.” He was raised in Stuttgart, Arkansas, and has spent the last 32 years being a country preacher in the piney woods five miles south of the little town of Hickory, Mississippi. He recently retired after 28 years as a Mississippi public schoolteacher and is now a stay-at-home-grandpa with his new grandson, Landon Cash. He and his lovely wife, Susan, live in a brick house in town (where the weather’s cloudy today.) Their kids include Spencer (age 26), his wife Madeline (age 26), and Seth (23), and his wife Leanne (age 22). You can send him a note at brotherjohn@ilovechurchcamp.com.
