The Root of Jesse: Peacemaker to All People

By Sabrina

STORY
When I was a kid, I had a very smart puppy. She didn’t have a leash because she knew how to walk close to me. She could spend all day far from home, but she knew the way back home. She was playful, she barked only to defend our house, and she loved to be cuddled . . . until one day she attacked and ate a bird! What? Yes, my sweet and smart puppy ate the bird my sister had won as Christmas gift. I was so frustrated and sad. I cried for many days. I couldn't understand why my sweet puppy could not live in peace with an innocent bird.

SCRIPTURE
Read Isaiah 11:1–9.

THINK
Wait a minute, what? Will a wolf live with the lamb? Will the leopard lie down with the goat? Will a lion and the fattened calf graze together and a child guide them? What does it mean? How is that possible? 

In Isaiah 11, the prophet announces the peaceful kingdom of the Messiah and describes what it will be like to live forever with Jesus. Whoa! But, what peace is this that even wild animals and children will live together in perfect harmony? We won't be able to fully understand this peace now, but one day we'll experience it when we're with Jesus Christ, our only hope and peace. And yes, we will see peace among countries, different people, even enemies. There will be true  peace on earth. When this happens, no one will do any harm or destroy anything. God will do and does impossible things and He will bring peace to all, even among animals!

DO SOMETHING
Today, make a list of a few things that you can do to bring peace to one specific person. Maybe you can write a note to an elder, or call your grandparents, or bake cookies for a neighbor. Choose one thing and ask your family to help you be an agent of peace.

PRAY
Dear God, thank You for the peace You will bring to all. Thank You that even though I don’t completely understand what kind of peace is that, I can trust that You will make a way when there is no way. Amen.