Seek The Peace Of The City

My grandson Patrick stopped by for an overnight visit this weekend, joined by his brother Shawn, Shawn's wife Marian, accompanied by Shawn and Patrick's parents, my daughter Cheryl Lee and husband Derrick. Sylvia and I joined them for a steak at Salt Grass Steakhouse to celebrate an important milestone: Patrick received his senior ring at Texas A&M University this weekend. He has only the spring semester left before graduation. We're all quite proud of him. He's quite aware of national events, but voices a deep distrust of all elected politicians.

Of course, his upcoming graduation brings back memories of my own, now nearly 54 years ago! And that takes me back to the world of the fifties, the hopes, plans and dreams of my generation. Any thoughts of the lives of my grandchildren back then were vague at the very best. Yet, from what I recall, we were positive and hopeful about our nation's future.

I paid relatively little attention to the 1954 national elections of representatives and senators. General Eisenhower, a Republican party war hero, had already been elected two years before during a time when Cold War tension between our nation and the Soviet Union was escalating. Eisenhower's election ended twenty years of the Democratic party's control of the White House. There was much concern about the stalemated Korean War and Senator Joseph McCarthy was finding communists hiding in closets everywhere. Yet with all those momentous events going on, I focused primarily upon my studies and my personal life. I was preparing for a lifetime vocation as a clergyman.

From what I hear, young voters broke voting turnout records this year. They doubled and in some cases tripled their presence in caucuses like Iowa, energized by the heated contest to decide whether, for the first time, a black candidate was to become the Democratic nominee and later president. They responded to intensive youth outreach from Republican and Democratic campaigns by volunteering, and used social networks to amplify their own opinions.

Perhaps that says something about the media making our youth more conscious of what's going on around them or perhaps they're feeling more pressured than many of my classmates and I did in the fifties. Each generation, it seems, brings its own uniqueness to the national scene. Yet each generation of believers must heed to what I did not give much attention in my youthful zeal for the kingdom of God. It is summarized in the words of the prophet Jeremiah (29:7).

"And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace."

The Israelite nation had lost its land to the marauding Babylonian empire over 600 years before the birth of Christ. For seventy years they remained slaves, their homes destroyed, relatives, parents and children slaughtered. And yet the LORD commanded them to seek the peace of the city and pray for it.

That word 'peace' is Shalom in Hebrew. It is an all-encompassing word, referring to safety, soundness (in body), welfare, health, prosperity, peace, quiet, tranquility, contentment, friendship, peace (from war) and above all, a peaceful relationship with God. And note that in the peace of the city or town where you live "you also shall have peace." In other words, when we Christians are prayerfully involved in the affairs of our towns and cities, the blessings abound for all.

Many are the issues facing our nation: poverty, immigration, financial crises, care for the elderly, education, the end of a most hated war and on and on. My prayer is that all of us in my generation, my children's generation and my grandchildren's generation take very seriously the guidance of the LORD and, according to our various callings, seek the welfare, health, prosperity and peace of this wonderful land in which we live. And, above all, let us seek to share that peace that surpasses all others, the peace offered by our heavenly Father through the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ.