Like all of us I was incredibly sadden to see a war break out in Ukraine. My heart wept for the innocent people who are now living in a war zone. I imagined all the mothers in Ukraine and Russia who were getting notices that their sons and daughters had died in war. I saw the lines in Russia as the poor rushed the banks to convert their currency as the Ruble became unstable. Like many of you I struggled to understand why it was happening, not trusting the narratives being shoved in front of us. While I am still not sure I understand what’s occurring and why, it doesn’t and shouldn’t change our compassion for all the innocent people in Ukraine and Russia who are suffering. It brought to my heart Paul’s words to the Colossians.
Colossians 3:15 says “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” Our hearts can easily be moved to anxiety by what’s going on around us. God designed our hearts to respond emotionally. We are hardwired to experience compassion, fear, concern, sadness, and joy. All of these emotions can be used positivity and powerfully. In fact, they are a part of God’s design for us to experience Him and His creation. Our challenge is to not be negatively impacted by our own emotions. In Colossians 3:15 Paul gives us a direct command: “let the peace of Christ rule”. It implies that God’s peace can rule if we let it. We have to cooperate with God to see God’s peace take an authoritative hold in our lives.
Paul also tells us that God’s peace rules. This means God’s peace gives direction or commands to our heart. In other words, having a disagreement in your own heart about what you feel is natural. There should be an inner battle between what we may be tempted to feel and God’s peace. To repeat a point, we must choose to agree with God rather than our feelings to “let the peace” rule in us.
Paul adds two more items worth noting for our peace. Paul reminds us that we are one body. Our unity impacts our peace. If we want to build a life that has a strong command of peace in our lives, we need to engage in the local church. We need small groups that are investing into each other on a weekly basis. When our peace becomes threatened, the people who can help us fight for our peace, are the people who have been encouraging us week in and week out. Hopefully we have people who are courageous enough to call us out when they see us living in anxiety or some other emotion rather than the peace of God.
Last, Paul adds “be thankful”. It’s such a simple phrase that almost seems random. God’s Word has no random statements. Each word is God’s inspired and has a specific, divine purpose. This last command connects peace and thankfulness. Practicing thankfulness creates an attitude prime for guarding peace.
So when we feel our peace challenged, we should practice gratitude, turn to our friends, and partner with God’s command to let peace reign. We should practice this when we were running late or when we see nations go to war. God’s peace works at any scale and at anytime.