“In the long run, the sharpest weapon of all is a kind and gentle spirit.”
Anne Frank
“What makes the temptation of power so seemingly irresistible? Maybe it is that power offers an easy substitute for the hard task of love. It seems easier to be God than to love God, easier to control people than to love people, easier to own life than to love life.”
Henri Nouwen
“For a day, just for one day,
talk about that which disturbs no one
and bring some peace into your
beautiful eyes.”
Hafez
“Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.”
Romans 12:18
MY PRAYER today is for peace, for what Henri Nouwen calls the hard task of love, and what the Holy Bible calls ‘striving for peace’. It is said that only the gentle can be truly strong. For peace is the absence of a powerful hold, and the strength of a firm foundation and position. It becomes something that we pursue in ourselves so that we can give it away to others, so that we can create conditions for it to gain ground and flourish. It is deciding to value it above being right, indeed in practicing it we show that we value others beyond our own gain. We step out of the centre and place others in the honoured place, whether they are deserving of it or not. Today I pray that we would look to the Prince of Peace to come and ‘fit our feet with the readiness of the gospel of peace.’ For we have places to walk and ground to bless.
These are drawn from daily reflections and prayers I write for my Chaplaincy colleagues.
Living Tree Poetry 