Hope, love, joy and peace all start right now

It's a huge question: Do I have peace? The four Sundays of Advent — which look to the birth of Christ — each have their own candle. Hope. Love. Joy. Peace.

Eight centuries before the birth of Jesus a man named Isaiah spoke this, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

I looked up “prince” to see how Wikipedia defines it. I got a person, but not the Prince of Peace. Instead I read about Prince, a “multi-talented pop/funk/rock performer.” Our son, in his FedEx job, used to deliver packages to Prince's estate in Minnesota.

I tried typing “definition of prince” — and found more what I'd expected. A monarch or king, or the son of a king or queen. A prince has territory he rules, a principality.

The Bible explains Jesus came as God's Son — fully God and fully man. All through His life He talked about a territory, the “kingdom of heaven,” being near. When He faced crucifixion He said to the Roman governor who held power to free Him, “My kingdom is not of this world.”

He told His disciples, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

Is peace a territory? And its ruler the Prince of Peace? It's a thought worth exploring. Do I travel to this kingdom, or does the Prince of Peace bring it to me?

What if peace is within reach through the story of Bethlehem being celebrated this week. A baby, a man, a prince, a king. Those wonderful words, “Emmanuel, God with us.” A relationship with my Creator — the One who knows me best.

Peace is such a restful word. Just speaking it is calming. It's exhausting to be angry and afraid and bitter and burdened—to feel like life is one big disappointment or “have to,” and one's self is worth nothing. We narrowly escaped a suicide tragedy among our family last week. Someone needing the Prince of Peace to come near.

If the Bethlehem Child could speak, what would I hear?Maybe it would sound something like this, “You think I'm too small to offer you anything large like peace. But I bring who I am with me to this humble birth. Hope. Love. Joy. Peace. It starts right now.”