“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 hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” John 14:27
Perhaps this grieving is your peace.
Perhaps this questioning
This uncertainty
This shaking of foundations
Is the peace you give.
Perhaps the frustration
The protest
The work
The weariness
Is the peace you left with us.
You do not give as the world gives–
Sometimes we wish you would,
But we are grateful you do not.
Let us receive the hard and holy peace you offer.
Do not let our hearts be troubled
And do not let them be afraid.
Amen.
Rev. Joanna Harader serves as pastor of Peace Mennonite Church in Lawrence, KS. She blogs at Spacious Faith.
RevGalBlogPals encourages you to share our blog posts via email or social media. We do not grant permission to cut-and-paste prayers and articles without a link back. For permission to use material in paper publications, please email revgalblogpals at gmail dot com.
RevGalBlogPals 
These are hard but faithful sentiments, Joanna. They remind me of the old beautiful hymn and it’s final verse:
It began as a poem written by William Alexander Percy and became a hymn. I heard it years ago, and then searched for it. It’s not played much, but I value it as it shared your sentiments. Peace.
They cast their nets in Galilee
Just off the hills of brown
Such happy simple fisherfolk
Before the Lord came down
Contented peaceful fishermen
Before they ever knew
The peace of God That fill’d their hearts
Brimful and broke them too.
Young John who trimmed the flapping sail,
Homeless, in Patmos died.
Peter, who hauled the teeming net,
Head-down was crucified.
The peace of God, it is no peace,
But strife closed in the sod,
Yet, brothers, pray for but one thing–
The marvelous peace of God
LikeLike
I’ve never heard this hymn before. Thanks so much for sharing it.
LikeLike