Becoming Instruments of God’s Peace
Theme for Week Three
Lord, make us instruments of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let us sow love.
-Prayer of St. Francis
Last week we focused on making peace with ourselves. For people of faith, making peace with ourselves is not an end in and of itself, but a necessary step toward our being able to be instruments of peace for others. Tuning a musical instrument is simply the first step in being able to make beautiful music.
In her reflection yesterday, Robbin Brent wrote so beautifully about how she has learned and experienced a deeper understanding of God’s peace throughout her life through the words of numerous spiritual writers. Most of us, too, have been nourished by the words of other spiritual teachers. For example, many have been inspired by the words of the Peace Prayer, a prayer attributed to St. Francis. The prayer begins with the words that will be our focus for this week: “Lord, make us instruments of your peace.” Throughout this week, we will reflect on the entire Peace Prayer, allowing us to deeply consider how each of us is called to serve as instruments of God’s peace. You can find the text of the Peace Prayer on page 46.
Making it Personal: Whose words, writings, and examples have inspired you to be instruments of peace and to sow seeds of love in the midst of challenging circumstances? In what ways might you be called to move outside of your comfort zone right now to be an instrument of God’s peace?