Blessed are the peacemakers. (Matthew 5:9)

When you walk into a scene of conflict you have two options; you can be a troublemaker or a peacemaker; you can add to the stress or bring a solution. Zig Ziglar tells of a little bloke who was confronted by three bullies, any one of whom could have flattened him. And clearly, that’s what they had in mind. But the little bloke was very bright. He backed away, drew a line in the dirt, backed up a few more steps, looked into the eyes of the biggest of the three and said, “Now, you just step across that line!” The big bully did. At that moment the little bloke grinned and said, “Good, now we’re both on the same side!”

Peacemakers look for common ground, and try to get everyone onto it. Their goal is to find a win-win situation. Barnabas, whose name means “Son of Encouragement,” stood up for the newly converted Saul of Tarsus when he was ‘persona-non-grata’ to the leaders of the church in Jerusalem. And given Saul’s track record, who could blame them? But Barnabas wasn’t looking at Saul’s troubled past, he was thinking about his potential. In essence he told the apostles, “If you can harness and direct this horse, you win the race.” And he proved right. Saul the persecutor became Paul the apostle! But Barnabas had to put his credibility on the line. Peacemaking means taking a risk on people, judging them by their best moments and qualities rather than their worst.

Here’s the bottom line; peacemakers are big picture thinkers; they’re governed by grace, not petty opinion or temporary conditions. So, are you ready to be a peacemaker?

Mr Peter Morphew
School Chaplain