Isaiah 9:6
The last of the names of Jesus in Isaiah 9:6 is Prince of Peace. In Hebrew, Prince means head person, leader. You probably have heard the Hebrew word for Peace - Shalom. It means completeness, personal welfare or health, friendly, a state in which one can feel at ease and comfortable with someone. The relationship is one of harmony and wholeness, which is the opposite of the state of strife and war - Vine's Expository Dictionary.
Jesus is our leader, our source, of harmony and wholeness. We can find complete acceptance, unconditional love, in our relationship with Him. We cannot find lasting peace anywhere else! The countries of our world desperately need peace, which is obvious when I watch the news. Marriages, families and children desperately need peace. Our kids all work with youth, as does a nephew. I also have a niece who works at the state level with children and families. I have several sisters-in-law that are teachers. They all can attest to the lack of peace in too many families.
Personally, fear was a constant companion for many years. My Prince of Peace helped me work through the issues that caused the fear and I can tell you that there is wonderful freedom in His shalom. The passage that our family quotes often is found in Philippians 4:6-7:
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
The peace He brings doesn't make sense. We can't humanly understand it. But we can certainly feel it! And I love that it doesn't just make us feel better, but it guards our emotions (hearts) and our thoughts (minds).
Have you heard of the contest where artists were instructed to paint a picture depicting peace? Many peaceful scenes were painted, but the painting that won was of a bird sleeping in a nest on the edge of a cliff in a terrible storm.
All of us experience "storms" in our lives. But Jesus offers shalom in the midst of them. I am forever grateful for my Prince of Peace.
Christmas Decorations
My honey and I bought a cute little angel when we were first married to put on the top of our Christmas tree. When she got a little frayed, I replaced her with a more majestic looking angel with a beautiful flowing gown. Then, one of our favorite Bible teachers, Dr. David Jeremiah, taught about angels. Did you know that angels are not ever referred to as feminine? In fact, a warrior would be a better representation of an true angel. And if you topped your tree with something that actually looked like a seraphim angel, it would scare the children!
So, I donated our tree angel to Goodwill and purchased a star tree topper to represent the star of Bethlehem.
Today's Recipe - Fried Apples
Granny Smith apples (1 per person), thinly sliced
1 tablespoon butter for each apple
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup for each 2 apples
cinnamon to taste
sprinkle of nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla
whipping cream or half & half
Fry sliced apples in butter. Add spices and syrup and cook over medium heat until apples are soft. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Top each serving with shipping cream or half & half.
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