Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you enjoyed today's message, why don't you be a blessing and share it with a friend? We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in your life. Yes, we are a grateful people, amen. I wanna encourage us all today to have a peacemaker's heart. A peacemaker's heart, the heart of a peacemaker. You see, we all wanna live in peace. We all want people to be at peace with us. We want peace in our families. We want peace in our homes But the way we're going to have peace is to make peace Peacemaker is a compound word peacemaker We should be the maker of peace The maker of peace You see we have the ability to draw the line in the sand and say i'm not going to step over this line of into strife Into division I'm gonna make peace. And how do we do that? The Bible says we make peace. We make unity through the bond of peace. See, it's our responsibility. No one, we don't have to depend on anyone to make peace for us. It's our responsibility to resolve the differences and the conflicts in our life, honoring God. See, that's what a peacemaker does. He honors God. It's an attitude. And that's why I described it as developing a heart of a peacemaker, because it's an attitude that we have to develop. It's something that we have to realize is our responsibility. See, Jesus gave a sermon on the mound and he gave all the beatitudes and he told about these beatitudes. You could call them, these are attitudes that bring the blessings of God in our life. And he said in Matthew 5, 19, he said, blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be sons of God. Blessed are those who are willing to let go of an offense. Blessed are those who don't walk in the pathway of conflict. Blessed are those who don't have to have their way all the time. blessed are those who are willing to keep the peace see we have to learn how to reconcile our differences and honor God see it's about unity and the only way we're going to find unity is through the bonds of peace unity doesn't mean we're all going to agree on everything unity doesn't mean we're all clones and we look alike we act alike we talk alike because we all know that ain't happening. We're all from different backgrounds. We have different opinions, different ways of doing things. So we have to learn that peace is what's going to bind us together. You know, it's so interesting in families and with co-workers and in partnerships with business, husbands and wife. The interesting thing is this. We start out good. We have the same goal in mind. We want to be successful at this task. We want to have peace in our homes We want to raise kids that are thriving and well able to accomplish things We want to have financial security. These are all common goals that we start out with But somewhere along the way because we differ in our personalities and the way we do things We begin to get in conflict We have the same goal, but we do it differently and that conflict sidetracks us and gets us off course So we don have the desired outcome or it extends and prolongs the outcome You see those are the things it at the end of the day it not the way you do it or I do it That's going to bring the happiness at the end of the day. It's going to be peace that binds us together in unity that brings the happiness, the achievement, the outcome of the goal. You see, there is a place in your spirit that says I am a peacemaker. And because I'm a peacemaker, I can trust God to fight my battles for me. I can trust God to bring the outcome, even if it's not the way I would do it. The attitude of a peacemaker is what we all need. We're all going to face challenges along the way. Those challenges are getting along with people because we all want our way. We all want to do it our way, our way or no way. You know, sometimes it can get to the lowest part of our maturity and it can be, if you don't do it my way, I'm not going to be happy. In fact, if you don't do it my way, we're not moving forward from this point. That is what is hindering our outcome. We've got to learn that if we want peace, it starts with us we can make it I was talking to a beautiful really sharp brilliant young girl the other day and we were having a conversation I could just see how sharp she was and with it and right on the ball and she began to tell me I have a strong personality you know I love to win I love the feeling of winning she says there's just something about being right it's a great feeling and then she paused and she said you know those traits of mine those personality traits I'm realizing they're beginning to slowly demise my marriage they're beginning to change the atmosphere of my home it's beginning to affect my children you see if you have to be right all the time and you love that feeling of being right, you're making other people feel wrong. You see, we don't want to make the people in our life feel wrong. We've got to let other people be right. We've got to allow them to be right. It doesn't mean that you have to agree with everything that they're saying. Just let them be right. It doesn't make you wrong. It makes you a peacemaker. It makes you a peacemaker. It makes you a person who says, I'm going to make peace because I don't want to be right all the time. It's too costly. It's too expensive. It isn't worth the price of my home, of my family, of my children, of my job. It's too costly. We have to be willing to be a peacemaker. I looked up the synonyms for peacemaker and listen to some of these words. It's diplomat, arbitrator, mediator, calmer, soother, go-between. Sounds like the characteristics of Jesus, doesn't it? It sounds like the attitudes that he walked this earth with and he won anyway. You see, he is saying our attitudes should be like that. You see, he made peace for us so that we could make peace for others. We could be reconcilers of peace. When Joel and I were really young in our marriage, before he was ever the pastor, we were at a meeting and he was talking to this gentleman and I came up a few minutes into the conversation but this gentleman was talking passionately and really had these convictions about what he was talking about He was going on and on, and to me, some of them sounded a little unrealistic and a little bit wrong in my opinion, but I wasn't going to say anything because I really wasn't part of the conversation, so I just sat there and listened, and I looked at Joel, and Joel was standing there with a pleasant look on his face. He was being very cordial. And I thought, oh, okay. All right. So as I was standing there, just listening to the conversation, a little while later, Joel had somehow given us an exit point. He had dismissed us and said, hey, we got to go. So as we were leaving a little, little later, we were in the car going home. And I said to Joel, I said, hey, you know, who was that guy? And what'd you think about his opinion? And, you know, I didn't know what I thought about it. I don't know if I agree with all that. And I said, did you agree with his opinion? And Joel said, no, I didn't. And I said, well, you were standing there so nice and everything. I thought maybe you did. I'll never forget what he said. He said, Victoria, I wasn't put on this earth to straighten everybody out. you know some people think they were they're the judge and the jury I thought that was so profound very deep I thought I like that I'm gonna remember that have you ever interjected in a conversation and later on when you left maybe when you got home you thought, why did I do that? I just wish I wouldn't have said anything. We ought to adapt that motto. I wasn't put on this earth to straighten everybody out. You know, that doesn't mean that we can't have opinions, likes, and dislikes that differ. You know, even in the most difficult conversations, if we will come from a place of honoring God, from a place of a peacemaker, a place of unity, that's how we're going to make it in this life. That's how we're going to keep the bond of peace. We all know that we have to have difficult conversations, but it's not about having our way. It's about saying, God, I want to converse with this person. I want to be intelligent about it, but I don't have to have my way I can let someone else be right and god. It doesn't have to be done my way There is more ways to a point than just my way There's more ways to a common goal than just my way Sometimes you've got to know when to take your hands off of it And when you've got to say god this isn't the way I would do it But you know what i'm gonna zip it up because i'm gonna keep unity through the bond of peace through the common ground of peace. And God, I'm not going to try to fight my way. I'm going to allow you to step in. And you see, God says, you're not blessed when you're right. You're not blessed when you win every argument. He says, the blessing comes from being a peacemaker. See, there's a blessing on the other side of that promise. And we've got to walk in that place of a peacemaker's heart. The Bible says in Ephesians, it says to bring unity through the spirit, through the bond of peace. If we're going to achieve unity, we're going to have to be active and we're going to have to take the initiative to do what it takes to make the peace. The scripture says, you know, as far as it up to you the buck stops there Be at peace with all men Let be instruments of peace because there a blessing in the life of a peacemaker Amen Amen He an awesome God Many people believe that God can heal, but when nothing is improving, our prayers are not being answered, it's easy to think, will God heal me? The truth is, God still loves to heal. I've witnessed God's healing power firsthand in my own family. When situations seemed impossible and medically speaking, there were no options, God stepped in and made a way. Now, I'd love to send you our new devotional, God Still Loves to Heal. It's filled with scripture and encouragement designed to strengthen your faith and help you believe for healing. Even when you can't see it, God is still working. As you stand firm and declare His promises, healing is on the way. The same God who healed in the Bible is still healing today. Your generous support is so important to help us share the message of hope. And as our way of saying thank you for your gift of any amount, Pastor Joel would like to send you a copy of God Still Loves to Heal, 70 Days to Receive, Reflect, and Rest in the Finished Work of God. This new seasonal devotional will guide you through a weekly rhythm where you'll be encouraged by life-changing insight that will strengthen and encourage you in your faith. Jesus cares about you physically, mentally, and emotionally. He forgives us, delivers us, and He heals us and makes us whole. With this inspiring devotional resource, you'll go on a healing journey. you'll enter into God's rest and restoration, knowing His promises are true yesterday, today, and forever. Receive your copy of this powerful new book and experience God's goodness and healing power. Be sure to request your copy of God Still Loves to Heal, available this month by simply visiting us at joelostein.com or call 888-567-JOEL. My mother was miraculously healed from terminal cancer. My sister Lisa was healed from a birth injury, similar to cerebral palsy. What God did for us, He can do for you. Victoria and I are going to be praying for you this month, especially for healing for you and your family, not just physically, but mentally and emotionally, that you will be completely whole. We appreciate your prayer and support. Your generosity is impacting people around the world. And special thank you to our Champion of Hope partners for all you do to make the ministry possible. Until we meet again, may the Lord bless you and keep you. Be sure to request your copy of God Still Loves to Heal available this month by simply visiting us at joelostein.com or call 888-567-JOEL. And you can fill your year with strength, peace, and encouragement with the Healing and Wholeness Collection. It features God's Word for every season, a guided four-part journal series to help anchor your heart to His promises. Plus, God still loves to heal and the blessing of taking communion. Together, they'll strengthen your faith, renew your hope, and remind you that Jesus still heals and restores today. You can request these inspiring resources by calling 888-567-JOEL or logging on to joelostein.com Call or click anytime, 24 hours a day. Request your copies today.
