I’ve been thinking a lot about peace recently.  We are in the midst of Advent, a season of hope, of peace, of love, of joy.  It’s in this season when we proclaim the words of Isaiah 9:6-7:

6 For a child has been born for us,
a son given to us;
authority rests upon his shoulders;
and he is named
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 His authority shall grow continually,
and there shall be endless peace
for the throne of David and his kingdom.
He will establish and uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time onward and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

The Prince of Peace is born!  That’s what we say.  That’s what we believe.  Let me repeat that

That’s what we believe.  Seriously.  As Christians.  As the church, that’s what we believe. And in the world that we live in, that makes us look different.  Off.  Odd.

And you know what?  Good.  We are supposed to.  We aren’t supposed to be like the world.  We aren’t supposed to be like the culture.  We are supposed to be different.  As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 4:10 – we are fools for Christ.  We ARE supposed to look different.  Believe different.  Act different.  Have a different hope, joy, love, and peace.

As I tell folks, if you tell folks you are Christian, and they say, “really?”  That’s not a good sign.  We have to look/be different from the world.

Now, here’s the thing.  I’m not saying that there aren’t things to be afraid of.  I’m not saying that there aren’t things that can take our peace, take our joy, take our hope, take our love.

Of course, there are.  There are big, scary, worrisome things.  But hear me, please hear.

God is bigger.  He is stronger.  He is more might.  He is.

He is bigger than your fears.

He is.  And as Christians, we have to believe it.  We do.  It’s who we are.

And the world needs us to believe it.

Your peace will not come from an absence of conflict or absence of things that are you are afraid of.  Your peace will come from the trust and assurance of this truth:

No matter what you face, not matter what you are afraid of – God is bigger.

He is the prince of peace.  Yesterday.  Today.  Forever.  He is He is bigger.  He is our peace.

Trust.