Mary’s Search for Peace
Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting
Pastor Bob Henry
December 13, 2019
A Reading from The Book of God
One Christmas, a few years ago, I received a card with a quote by an unknown author about Peace – it read:
PEACE: it does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work, it means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.
This little card became a good reminder and helped me stay a bit calmer through some difficult times.
I want each of us to take a moment this morning to ask ourselves…
What are the things in life (the noise, trouble, the hard things) that are causing me to not have peace?
[Pause to reflect]
I can relate to Quaker Catherine Whitmire when she says, “peace is not a steady state, I find it, lose it, and then have to search for it again.”
Personally, when I seem to find or sense some “peace” in my life – it’s about then when I find myself caught in a traffic jam, having car problems, a sick child, that bill arrives, or I have an unexpected emergency. The reality is that life doesn’t stop and the things that take away our peace keep coming. And I find myself being sent back to searching for some peace among the storms of life.
Finding peace in our world or in our lives takes practice. Some would even say it is a discipline. And when we practice peace, it often causes us to have to wrestle with our patience, empathy, acceptance, trust, discernment, obedience, and self-awareness. In my former Yearly Meeting, January was always Peace Month, but often as we began wrestling with what it takes to experience peace, many would simply get upset realizing how difficult it really is. We would joke that January was anything, but peaceful.
Patience, empathy, acceptance, trust, discernment, obedience, and self-awareness are not easy things to practice and work on. No wonder peace is so hard to find in our world it takes some effort.
It also means that we will need to admit that “Peace is not simply the absence of conflict” as many in our world believe and pursue – often to their detriment. Actually, conflict often helps us grow and teaches and helps us with our patience, empathy, trust, discernment, obedience, and self-awareness. To reconcile with a person, we are in conflict with often starts with us looking inward at our own struggles with these vary things.
If you notice, God’s peace (especially what is described in scripture, and even more what is spoken of in the Christmas story) comes at often turbulent times.
Take for example, the Christmas Story Nicole read about the Angel appearing to Mary. Just prior to the Angel’s announcement, Walter Wangrin Jr. gives us a glimpse of the need for Mary to seek peace amidst the chaos of her life. The noise of her betrothal had intensified, she was in tears, and the last bit of so-called peace was going to be shattered by an announcement of divine proportions.
As a pastor, I have officiated my share of weddings and prepared many couples for that special day. I have also been through the process with Sue (actually 25 years ago today we were in the midst of that process - as we get ready to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary in June of this coming year).
In our day and age, betrothal is still often very stressful – with all the planning, organizing, preparing…
There are in-law issues, family issues, relational issues.
There are new questions, new ideals, new family members to deal with.
Often the beauty of marriage is overshadowed by a lack of peace.
Just like in Mary’s story. Mary needed some space – she needed some peace.
For those married here this morning – can you relate? Just take a moment to remember.
What was your engagement time like? Was all the stress worth it?
Maybe you are not married – and you can relate more to Mary’s aloneness. Maybe the stress of life or the constant barrage of people leaves you feeling alone – needing space.
Where do you go in these times? Where do you search for the peace you have lost?
Walter Wangrin Jr. painted us a word picture in our story of how Mary was feeling. He said, “She felt so sad,” yet at the same time “happy,” “excited,” “not content,” but [actually] really scared.”
I don’t know about you, but I can relate to this roller-coaster of emotions. Life often leaves us feeling this way. And many times, all we can do is, like Mary, bow our heads or bury our heads in our arms, and weep.
We finally surrender to the stress – the lack of peace – the lack of balance – and we hit bottom. And like I spoke about a few weeks ago – our lives begin to cry out for God to intervene. “Take this away.” “Fix my life or situation.” “Help me!”
In these moments we often have high expectations of God. Maybe we see what God has done in someone else’s life or situation and expect it to be the same for us.
Though, God very seldom – if ever – creates a formula, a wrote method. Scripture testifies to this fact. Instead, God uniquely answers the cry of our individual hearts.
I am sure Mary was not expecting a messenger of God showing up and then announcing something that would send her stress level and lack of peace through the roof!
It says that Mary was terrified. She was in shock and even doubted this message was for her.
I often hear this happening in other people’s lives. Actually, I have also personally experienced it. When we think we are at our lowest, when we at the bottom and sacred, that is often when God is actually calling us. When God is going to use us in powerful ways. We feel unworthy but God finds favor with us. On our hands and knees, in our doubt, in our questioning, with all our mistakes and bad choices, in our defeatedness, in our sadness, when we are scared to death to find out what is around the next corner…that is when God says, “I want to birth something new inside you!”
Like Mary – each of us are called to bear the Light of the world in our lives. As Quakers we know this and affirm it. But Mary’s story reminds us again that we (ordinary people) can be pregnant with the Light of Christ!
Folks, this is a great privilege. To realize that we are pregnant with the Light of Christ is humbling. To realize there is that of God inside each of us waiting to give birth to peace, hope, love, joy to help the noisy, troubled and hard world around us and in us, is simply beautiful.
May we find time during this crazy, busy, Holiday Season, for a Selah moment. Remember to center down and acknowledge the Light being birthed within you. It may be a light of reconciliation or a light of peace among your family, or it might simply calm your heart long enough to help you find some peace to get through the day.
As we enter our time of waiting worship this morning, may it offer you a time of peace. Acknowledge the Light being birthed within you and see how you will share it with the world.
Queries to Ponder:
What are the things in life (the noise, trouble, the hard things) that are causing me to not have peace?
What may I need to reconcile to see peace in my life?
What is God birthing inside of me this Christmas season that will help bring peace to my world?