Days 42. I have chosen to live intentionally toward the goals, dreams and desires God has placed on my heart for the last 90 days of this year, pressing past fear, excuses and discomfort toward fullness of life as we countdown to 2020. Days 42: walking in obedience.
A couple years ago, my friend, Gladys Goeringer and I, began to reflect on what we were seeing in the world and hearing in our communities. As news stories of racism, sexism, and xenophobia compounded discouragement, day after day, we began to observe people, who were typically mobilized toward activism, exhausted, discouraged and immobilized. The truth is, we were exhausted ourselves.
As we watched the news, listened to all the differing political opinions, listened to muslim refugees who were afraid to walk near churches for fear they would be beaten or their hijabs would be ripped off the heads*, and we saw profound injustice, we began to ask, “Where do we all come together?” Our answer? Peace. We believed at the core of it all was a desire for individuals to have peace in their families, communities and world.
We dreamed up the idea of The Pursuit of Peace Podcast with the goal of helping people move toward peace or biblical Shalom. Biblical peace,Shalom, is about peace, completeness, wholeness in every sphere of life. It is about having greater peace in ourselves and our homes and also establishing just systems in our neighborhoods and world. It is about believing God is still moving and knowing we have an active role in bringing peace, justice, transformation and hope in our world today.
So over the past few weeks, as I have been horribly sick, between sips of gatorade and NyQuil, my energy has gone into walking in obedience and stepping toward this vision God placed on my heart and Gladys’ heart a few years ago. So, today, we do our part in bringing Shalom through conversation and practical next steps. I invite you to join us in the journey with The Pursuit of Peace Podcast. You can listen on Apple Podcast, Spotify or anywhere you listen to your podcast.
This Fall we begin by exploring practical ways we can pursue peace during the holidays, but as we leap into 2020, we will expand this conversation. You can check us out at www.thepursuitofpeacepodcast.com. Follow us on instagram @thepursuitofpeacepodcast and let us know your thoughts. Let us know what conversations you’d like to hear through our contact forms on my website or our podcast website.
*This is sadly a true account of what occurred in our suburban Chicago community. This the experience of friends of some refugee friends.
Actions Steps: What desires has God placed on your heart? What is one small step today you can take to make that dream a reality? It may take a few years as it has for us, but if the desire or the dream is still there, it is not too late. Take one step today!
