Glory to God and Peace on Earth

When the angels came, they declared Glory to God and Peace to Earth. When God is glorified, peace follows. Glory and Peace are connected at the hip. They come from and strengthen one another simultaneously. If you want peace, live to glorify God. And when you do, your peace will increase.

At first glance, we might say that we do live to glorify God because we go to church, we have our Christian t-shirts, and the Jesus fish on the back of the car. These bring attention to your intention to glorify God, but these do not actually indicate a life glorifying God.

To glorify God is to live with such behavior and attitude that it reveals God to be exactly who He claims to be in Scripture. And we can’t glorify God unless we trust Him completely.

When the angel came to Mary to let her know she would be with child, she was fully aware in her theocratic society, she would be at risk of being totally shunned at best and at worst, stoned to death. With complete trust, she reasoned that if God was going to give her this miracle, He would protect her as well.

We know an angel appeared to Joseph but not until after he found out she was pregnant. He planned to divorce her. He was a just man, so he did not want to expose her to stoning, but that was his right under the law. I imagine this moment where Mary tells Joseph she is pregnant. She tells him of the angel, but it is too much for him to believe so he leaves hurt, disappointed, ready to divorce her.

Yet, Mary put her trust in God. Would she be a single parent? Would society shun her completely? Would her parents disown her? Would Joseph change his mind? Would she be stoned to death?

She brought her concerns to the Lord. He reminded her that He was God and would keep His promise to care for her. In prayer, she found trust in the Lord. She didn’t freak out. She didn’t get depressed. She didn’t let fear take over. She didn’t lash out. She simply trusted God. The angel called her blessed and highly favored. She trusted and found peace. Her peace reflected a God who would care for His children. From her peace, a new song erupted and she glorified her God.

Prayer: Lord, help me to remember that You have promised to take care of me and help me to trust You when things look difficult. Move me to prayer to be reminded that You are good. Amen!