"Peace be with you" John 20:19-31 Pgh 4-25-04

Tonight as we continue in the Easter season I want to invite us to think about peace. What brings peace to your life? Are there times in your life when you can say I really know what it is to experience peace. Deep in my heart I know what peace feels like? What are some of the things that take away your peace? An argument with a loved one? A conflict at work? Being around a really negative or unhealthy person? As you go thorough your day how do you give peace to others? In the way you relate in your reactions to situations how do live a peace-filled day. As we look at the big picture how can we make our world a place for peace? When will the wars end, when will we be able to turn on the TV and not see a violent scene portrayed? Peace.

Each week during our time of prayer I pray these words I believe originally spoken by a Buddhist priest: "we pray for our world that there will be peace between nations, peace in our communities, peace in our homes, and peace in our hearts." Peace is vital to our health and well being in our individual lives, in our relationships, in our communities, and certainly in our world.

In tonight's gospel reading we hear the story of another resurrection appearance as Jesus appears to the disciples and to Thomas in particular. In each instance Jesus says the words that would have been a very familiar greeting to the ears of the disciples: Peace be with you. This was a common Jewish greeting that the disciples would have heard over and over again in their daily lives. Peace be with you. In Greek these words would mean: Peace, quietness, prosperity or unity of purpose be with you and yours. Who among us doesn't want a certain quietness in our lives. A quietness in our souls that allows us to hear our voice, and to hear the voice of God. What a wonderful blessing to offer another person that they might know unity of purpose. That they might have direction in their lives and be at one. But the words peace be with you mean even more in Hebrew. Peace, may God's favor be upon you. May you have good health and safe rest, may you experience wholeness. May God bring to you everything that builds you up and makes for your best in life.

Jesus greeting, Jesus' blessing to those frightened disciples were words of liberation. Peace be with you. I'm not dead, I'm alive and I have come to breathe new life into you. To give you my peace that indeed passes all understanding. To the disciples hiding behind closed doors for fear of their lives these words would be the beginning of a new faith, a new way of living.

Peace - what brings peace to your life? In many ways peace comes to us in stillness and rest. It comes when we can quiet the world around us and listen for God's still small voice. Peace comes when we can get away from the hectic activities that would drain us and keep us focused on what's happening around us. But peace also can come when we are in the midst of our every day activities. When we know we are doing the right things, when we are sure that are life is in order. Peace can come also in the midst of our deepest worries and conflicts when we are at rest with God. When we trust that whatever is happening God is the midst of it. Some of our moments of deepest peace can even come when we've experienced the worst moments of human living, when we know without a shadow of a doubt that this is where we are suppose to be and this is what we are suppose to be doing. Peace in the calm of restful tranquillity, peace in the eye of the storm. What makes both of those possible - faith that God is there in both places.

In our every day relating to one another we have the opportunity to take the peace of God with us to all who we meet. When we look into the eyes of another and offer respect, dignity, and the willingness to walk alongside one another. When we offer words of hope and forgiveness, instead of words of anger or blame. When we can allow each other to be different and to express our differences without judgment. When we can be open to new ideas and thoughts. When we can really listen to what each other is saying. When we work through conflict in a healthy way. When we can deep in our hearts want what is best for another person and in our actions work to make that happen. We have the responsibility and the great opportunity to breathe words of peace into our world by all that we say and do.

I believe ours can become a world of peace and that peacemaking beings in our individual hearts. Find out this day what brings peace to your life. Nurture those activities such as meditation, sitting in nature, prayer, taking time alone - anything that brings quietness to your life. In that quietness !et God know your fears and anxieties. Be honest about those things that bring you unhappiness and that keep you from being all God wants you to be. What keeps you up and night and haunts your days. Those may be some of the things that keep you from experiencing peace in your heart. Secondly I invite you to look at the ways you can bring peace to the people you meet during your week. What are the words you can offer to another that will build them up and bring them God's shalom, God's peace? Begin with the people in your home, then where you work or go to school or the organizations you belong to? Who there needs peace? How can you act as a peacemaker when conflict arises, when times are difficult,? Are world has the potential to be a place of peace as each one of us prayers for peace, has peace in our hearts, and lives out that peace in our daily activities.

Peace, may God's favor be upon you. May you have good health and safe rest, may you experience wholeness. May God bring to you everything that builds you up and makes for your best in life. And may you take the very precious gift of each to enliven our world. Peace be with you.