“Peace be with you!”
John 20: 20 “Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you.”
How often have we used that statement without much thought as to whether it will actually help to bring peace? Peace means different things for us. Peace is the end or absence of war, between nations and between people. Peace is also that sense of well-being that everything is going to be okay.
When Jesus appeared to the disciples after Easter, the first thing he said to them was “Peace be with you” because he knew they had been hiding away in fear and needed reassurance and hope. Let’s face it, today, we could all use Jesus appearing to offer us peace amidst the chaos of our world. Just stepping out the front door brings an anxiety and fear that most of us have not known before. And yet, in Jesus we are given a peace that will help us face the days ahead. It won’t make all the bad things go away instantly, but God’s peace reassures us that the days are coming when it will all be okay. The peace of Jesus can still our worried minds and calm our anxious souls and for that, we can be thankful.