John 14:27: Peace
I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I
unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
John 14:2-6. 2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a
place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am,
there ye may be also. 4 And
whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. 5 Thomas saith unto him,
Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way,
the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Finding Peace President Thomas S. Monson; Ensign, MARCH 2004
In a world where peace is such a universal quest, we sometimes
wonder why violence walks our streets, and family quarrels and
disputes mar the sanctity of the home and smother the tranquility of so many
lives.
The struggles across
the globe remind us that the peace we seek will not come without effort and determination.
Anger, hatred, and contention are foes not easily subdued. Their sphere of
influence is not restricted to the battlefields of war but can be observed
altogether too frequently in the home, around the hearth, and within the heart.
The statesman William Gladstone described
the formula for peace when he declared: “We look forward to the time when the power of
love will replace the love of power. Then will our world know the blessings of
peace.”
World peace, though a lofty goal, is but an
outgrowth of the personal peace each individual seeks to attain…not the peace
promoted by man, but peace as promised of God (ie peace in our homes, in our
hearts, in our lives). Peace after the way of man is perishable. Peace after
the manner of God will prevail. May I
suggest three ideas to prompt our thinking and guide our footsteps (to peace):
1). Search inward, 2) Reach outward, 3) Look heavenward.
Len’s Personal Stories (life
after death/peace in spite of borderline prognoses):
1) Dad: My visit home prior
to his death; some tender moments including a discussion of our knowledge that
we will be together again (I was raised in a strong Lutheran family)
2) Cousin Monte: Aunt Ruth-Uncle Fred’s comments during my
personal visit to their home in AZ about being w/ Monte again; more certainty w/ passing years (active Methodist family)
3) Val: Knowledge of eternal families softened the blow of her premature
death @ age 17 ¾
4) Len’s subarachnoid hemorrhage (2003): Uncertain prognosis w/ 2 probable surgeries; priesthood blessing ‘all would be well’; people were surprised
at how calm & peaceful we were
Message of Peace (President Monson’s closing comments)
The darkness of death can ever be dispelled by the light of
revealed truth. “I am the resurrection, and the life,” spoke the Master. “He
that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever
liveth and believeth in me shall never die.” (John 11:25-26)
Such is our message.
He lives! And because He lives all shall indeed live again. This knowledge
provides the peace for loved ones of those whose graves are hallowed resting
places in countless locations.
Len’s Closing
Remarks/Testimony
Christ’s birth, life, atonement & resurrection relative
to eternal families
