OUR DAILY BREAD                     Sat., December 24, 1994
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READ:  Ephesians 2:11-18

                THE PEACE INITIATIVE

     "He came and preached peace to you who were
         afar off and to those who were near."

               - Ephesians 2:17

It was the night before Christmas in 1870.  French
and German armies faced each other on the field of
battle in the Franco-Prussian War.  A French soldier
started walking toward the German lines.  His comrades
watched breathlessly, expecting to hear at any instant
the crack of a rifle that would end his life.  As he
neared the enemy lines, he stopped and began singing
"Noel, noel!  Noel, noel!  Born is the King of Israel!"
No shot rang out.

Slowly the Frenchman returned to his ranks.  There
was silence!  Then from the German side came a lone
soldier to the same spot and sang the German version
of the same song.  After each stanza both armies
united in the chorus.  For a few minutes Christ
brought peace to that battlefield.

God is a peacemaker who always takes the first step.
Jesus came as a baby, and when He grew to manhood He
preached peace to a warring world.  Then, in the
greatest peace initiative this world has ever seen,
Christ made peace between God and man by dying for
our sins (Col. 1:20).

Peacemaking efforts may be rejected, but the alter-
native is continued hostility.  God didn't settle
for that, nor should we.  Let's take the first step
in healing a broken relationship, even at the risk
of being "shot down."

    -- Dennis J. De Haan

 O Prince of Peace, keep us, we pray,
       From strife and enmity;
  Help us to speak with loving words
        That quell hostility.

    -- J. David Branon

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       THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
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What this world needs is
the peace that passes all misunderstanding.

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:  2 John; 3 John; Jude

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Our Daily Bread, Copyright 1994, used by permission of
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