PEACE BE WITH YOU
Today's reading: Psalm 122-124

"For the sake of my family and friends, I will say, 'Peace be with you.(shalom)' For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek what is best for you, O Jerusalem." Psalm 122:8 NLT

Shalom, or peace be with you, is a very common Jewish blessing.

What it means exactly is a little deep, but here it is...

Shalom means completeness, wholeness, health, peace, welfare, safety, soundness, tranquility, prosperity, perfectness, fullness, rest, harmony, the absence of agitation or discord. Shalom comes from the root verb meaning to be complete, perfect and full.

I love how the psalmist, in his ascent into Jerusalem to worship, states right up front that he prays peace over his fellow travelers and Jerusalem itself--for their sake, not for his own.

For the sake of family and friends, are we praying peace into their lives? However it may end up affecting us? However far it may take our dearest ones from us in order to do His will? However different it may look than the plan we have in our heads and hearts? However patient I may need to be as God's work is done in the lives of a loved one struggling against conviction?

For the sake of our house of worship, are we praying peace over its services? The servants? The outreaches? The building itself? The hearts of the volunteers? The attitudes of the workers? The reputation it has in the community? The time and effort I may need to put into doing what He's asked me to do? The putting aside of my opinions for the Lord's will to be done?

For their sake, not for my own--that's a tough prayer that I shouldn't be dishing out lightly, flippantly or without sincerity.