December 8, 2020
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Photo Credit: Don Flowers
For a child has been born - for us! The gift of a son - for us! He'll take over the running of the world. His names will be: Amazing Counselor, Strong God, Eternal Father, Prince of Wholeness. His ruling authority will grow, and there'll be no limits to the wholeness he brings. He'll rule from the historic David throne over that promised kingdom. He'll put that kingdom on a firm footing and keep it going with fair dealing and right living, beginning now and lasting always. The zeal of God-of-the-Angel-Armies will do all this. God Answered Fire with Fire - Isaiah 9:6-7 from The Message
We know this scripture, often recited in King James English. We read Jesus shall be called the Prince of Peace. It's interesting to see Peterson translate the word peace as wholeness. In our world of cease-fires and demilitarized zones, we have come to see peace as an absence of conflict. I see so many marriages entangled in conflict, peace as an absence of conflict is good news. Yet, as we visit peace, the lack of conflict is a mere beginning of wholeness. We are invited to take the lull of hostility and begin to reconcile.
Recently CBC interviewed a non-smiling Brian Burke, former coach and now hockey analyst. Brian told the story of getting speared by a player. Then, in the next match, Brian got into a fight with that player. Brian waited two years for that match and that fight. He never forgot the incident where he was wronged.
We, too, sometimes hang on to our hurts in an effort that maybe one day there will be payback. Our character is formed or malformed by the attitudes and behaviours we have invested.
Jesus offers us peace. But our wholeness comes when we bring our hurts and memories to the sacred fire of Grace. When we offer them, the fire changes them to vapour. Yet, we are tempted to hang on to our fantasies, bitterness, and anger, which is more appealing than reconciliation and forgiveness.
Prayer: Jesus, you know us. You see what secrets we think we keep hidden. Mostly we hide it from ourselves. Please give us the courage to step up and receive your Grace and offer our wounds for transformation.
Jeff Hosick is a veteran firefighter, a fire department chaplain, a psychotherapist, and a professional trainer/speaker. While he works as a trauma specialist, he is also currently serving the Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada as an interim pastor.