World peace begins in my heart

It is tempting to think of peace as the absence of conflict indeed, this is how dictionaries tend to define it. However, it is so much more than that. In John 14:27 Jesus is reported having said “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives.” So, peace is something that was in Jesus that He passed on to his disciples. This means that, spiritually, peace is not an outcome it is something within; a power that we possess.
 
Revealing Word defines peace as ‘harmony and tranquillity derived from the awareness of the Christ consciousness’. And Matthew asserts in the beatitudes ‘Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God’. To be a child of God means to take on the attributes of God or being ‘made in the likeness of God’. So, as I connect to the Christ consciousness, I become a channel of peace that flows through me and out to the world at large.
 
We are all but one consciousness so, as that peace flows through me it also flows to the totality of consciousness and contributes to world peace. The absence of conflict will come when this is appreciated widely and practiced widely.
 
In practical terms, which is what Unity is about, it means that instead of reacting negatively to situations or thinking badly of others, that I take the time to go within and allow the ‘peace that passeth all understanding’ to flow through me and as me. Personally, I find this challenging at times but, through a daily meditation and prayer practice I increasingly allow the Christ consciousness to flow and, equally importantly, not beat myself up when I don’t manage to meet my own expectations. You see, being frustrated or angry with myself is denying the opportunity for peace. So, I treat myself with love and compassion as well as attempting to do the same for others.
 
I encourage all of us to find the space of peace within, especially when the temptation is to do the opposite. Let us be the peace that we want to see and thereby experience.
 
Rev. Paul Mapletoft
Unity Minister