Advent Devotion – December 22, 2010

Scripture – Psalm 17

“Hear a just cause, O LORD; attend to my cry; give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit.” (Psalm 17:1)

When David said those words in the tenth century B.C., he was a man calling out to God and saying to the Almighty that he was delivering his enemies to him.

As a former member of the Peacemaking Advisory Committee I understand how David felt. What do we do when faced with the trouble of the world? We pray. Then we act.

Peace will come to this world through those willing to meet violence with love and to hate the mistreatment of our brothers and sisters. It is not our place to judge those who mistreat others. In the end theirs will be a judgment not of this world.

We cannot, as David is saying, fix all of the wrongful deeds that are taking place around us, but we can comfort those who have been harmed—the victims of those crimes. We can protect the innocent and the children by loving them and by putting ourselves between them and those who would do them harm.

The men and women who are peacemakers have given of their time and strength to reach out, led by Scripture and the love of God. All of them—members of the church, people in our communities—with the support of fellow believers are able to do great works in the name of the Father.

Prayer
Today, let me stand with the many in our Father’s house who are making a difference in our communities and beyond by reaching out through the love of God to the victims, by being a place of refuge, a place of hope. The light of the Father be upon us, and fill us with his word. Amen.

Ansel Woodenknife, Peacemaking Advisory Committee,
class of 1996, Interior, South Dakota

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