Don’t see the audio player? Click here.
Many people know Benjamin Banneker helped to layout Washington, D.C. But this African American, born in 1731, also put out an annual almanac. In it, he promoted peace. He urged the president to adopt this four-point peace plan: Appoint a Secretary of Peace; Set up free schools in every city; Give every family a Bible; Print this Bible verse on every door, “The Son of Man came into the world not to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.” In fostering peace, Banneker did as Isaac did many years ago. Genesis Chapter 26 tells us that the Philistines were very jealous of Isaac because God blessed him so much. To embarrass and harass him, they filled up all his wells with dirt. Instead of retaliating, Isaac just moved on and dug other wells. After a while, the Philistines realized God was blessing Isaac despite their harassment. So they offered to make peace with him. He accepted their peace offer. And the very day he did, God blessed him with a new well. God is pleased when we work for peace and justice. He sent His Son to be the Prince of peace. Christ died so that we can have peace with God by accepting His Son as our Savior. We enjoy inner peace by resting in His sufficiency. And until He comes again, He wants us to share the message of His love and forgiveness, and to work for peace and justice in our world.
