Sharing God’s peace is not simply a friendly hello to those sitting around you. Sharing God’s peace is not a time for catching up on news with your neighbor or reminding someone about an upcoming meeting. Sharing God’s peace does not require each worshipper to offer a sign of God’s peace to every other worshipper present. Sharing God’s peace with one another is an act of reconciliation. It is an opportunity for God’s people to be reconciled with each other as they offer their gifts to God and before they receive the gift of Holy Communion. What can the exchange of peace teach us for daily living? Christians are people who seek reconciliation with one another. Making peace is a daily action in our lives. We do not need to wait to come to church on Sunday morning in order to make peace with our neighbors and our family members. Sharing God’s peace is a daily opportunity.
This message is adapted from “Passing the Peace” by Dennis and Linda Post Bushkofsky in March 1998 issue of Lutheran Woman Today (now Gather) magazine. Today we remember Martin, Bishop of Tours (died 397) and Søren Kierkegaard, teacher (died 1855).