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If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.

Romans 12:18
Peace is good for us personally, but it is also critical for us relationally with God. Our peace with others opens up the flow of God’s relational presence and work in our lives. Far too many of us are actually blocking the movement of God in our lives because we are living in ongoing conflict. Or we are blocking the authority of God to overpower the enemy and his tactics in our lives because we are engaged in disunity. When our emotions and our thoughts are war zones due to a refusal to be unified under God and His kingdom authority, we pay the price. You may think that when you are angry at someone or judging someone you disagree with that you are harming or dismissing them. But you are actually harming and dismissing yourself.

The more conflict you carry in your own heart, the more chaos you invite into your life and circumstances. Blessed are the peacemakers because they will carry the powerful testimony of the power of God. To be blessed is to have God show up when you need Him most. It is to see God’s hand in the midst of your trials and challenges. It is to experience the authority of God as He overturns, overrides, or removes that which Satan has sent to take you down. A blessing isn’t a pat on your head or an “atta boy” on your back. A blessing accesses power, opportunities, and kingdom authority. A blessing opens doors. This concept of living according to the kingdom value of being a peacemaker isn’t just for monks or nuns or people picketing for peace.

This is a critical kingdom value which, if you adopt it as a way of life, will open the floodgates of heaven for you. This divine recognition of your position as a son or daughter of God gives you instant access to the King. It gives you access to answered prayer. You get to hear from heaven, whereas before your prayers often bounced off the ceiling. Answered prayer is a two-way commitment. Prayer isn’t about just sending up a wish list to God and He acts as your dutiful servant to fulfill it.

Answered prayer is frequently predicated on your relationship to God and your obedience to His commands. If you want to see and experience more of God in your life, then you need to make the pursuit of peace a high commitment in your heart. It is in how you treat others that you reflect the level of God’s love that is radiating inside you. When you cannot see what to do at all, allow God to do wonders by simply pursuing peace with those around you. 

Reaction:
How can the pursuit of peace in your relationships allow you to experience God more freely? According to God’s Word, is there ever a time to accept disunity? If so, when? What areas or relationships in your life could benefit by your prioritization of the pursuit of peace? 

Prayer:
Jesus, give me inner peace so that it radiates from within me to those around me. I welcome more of You and Your presence within me so that Your love and peace overflow from me to others. I pray this in Your name, amen.