Advent-Jesus is the Prince of Peace

Note: This is the transcript of children’s moment December 5, 2010 by Adell Martin a mother, grandmother,  member-deacon of Community Baptist Church, a retired Army Chaplains wife and retired administrative assistant.

Today Pastor Tim’s sermon is about Peace. When I think of peace, I think of words like quiet, calm, tranquility, harmony, sanctuary. I’m going to ask you a personal question and you don’t really need to answer it. Have your parents or teachers ever said in a very loud voice: I NEED SOME PEACE AND QUIET AROUND HERE! That doesn’t sound very peaceful, does it?

Mr. Jerry and I keep this plaque outside by our front door. It says PEACE to all who enter here.

It is our hope that people who walk into our home will feel comfortable and calm.

But peace is really not a place or a feeling. Peace is an activity. Peace is something you do. In Hebrew, which was one of the languages spoken in Jesus’ day, the word for peace is Shalom and it means having everything you need to be completely yourself. Wow! Peace is a good word to use and say to people you care about and people you love.

Jesus is known as the Prince of Peace.

In John 14:27 Jesus said “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.”

I think that to Jesus PEACE meant the presence of love.

In your family, peace might mean not fighting or arguing or fussing or whining with your brother or sister or parents.

When our three youngest granddaughters argue and need to apologize or “make peace,” their parents insist that the one who has done wrong apologizes and clearly says, for example: “I’m sorry that I yelled at you Madison.” Then Madison will say: “I forgive you Mary.” This way, peace comes and we can live peacefully with others. Apologizing is a hard thing to do sometimes, even for adults. Would you help practice peace this week in your home and at school? To have peace we must find ways to work for peace. When you play a game, someone wins and someone loses. When Mr. Jerry and I play our card game (which we play almost every day), at the end of the game (and we both like to win) we shake hands and say “Good Game.” Our grandchildren taught us that too. If you stomp off or run away all mad because you lost the game, that is not peaceful, is it?

Mr. Nibby Priest has 2 huge “PEACE” signs decorating his house on Water Street. You can look up and see them on the screen. They remind us of Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

I brought some ornaments from our tree that are meaningful to me because they are about peace. This one is handmade and says, “The Prayer of Christmas is Peace.” This one is Peace in large letters and is a good reminder of what Christmas is about.

I have made cookies with a peace symbol on them and each of you may have one in Children’s Church so you can remember that Jesus is the Prince of Peace. I also made each of you a Christmas ornament to hang on your tree and the ornament has Peace written on it. Peace is God’s gift to us and our gift to each other.

I want to teach you a song that I learned when I was your age and it is sort of a tongue-twister.

Adults, if you know it, please sing along:

I have the peace that passeth understanding, down in my heart, down in my heart, down in my heart.

I have the peace that passeth understanding, down in my heart, down in my heart to stay.

Go in the peace of Christ and listen for the word PEACE as we celebrate the Christmas Season.