Being...

We had a visioning retreat today. Read these two phrases that I wrote down today during the retreat:

From the song, The Summons, by John Bell: “Will you let me answer prayer in you and you in me?”

From the Benedictine Rule of life: “…so that you may be peace to all.”

I think both of these phrases look at life in Christ in a different way, just through the change of a word or two. It is those small changes that alter the meaning for me.

“Will you let me answer prayer in you…” We think of God as answering prayer, I think – something God does for us or to us. This phrase turns that concept around. Will you be the answer to a prayer? Will you allow God to partner with you to answer prayers?

“So that you may be peace to all.” Read that again. It doesn’t say, “so that you can bring peace to all.” This is a benediction that was read today which asks us to BE peace to all. What does it mean to BE peace? I wonder if it means this: will you be so much like Christ, so much like God, that others will know God through you? If peace is the contentment of living in His will, of knowing God-given joy and being in God’s presence, then to be peace to someone would seem to mean that we are the presence of God to them.

Can you be the answer to a prayer? Can you be the presence of God to someone? May it be so.