Peace
The Fourth Sunday of Advent
Praise him for his mighty works;
praise his unequaled greatness! ~ Psalm 150:2 (NLT)
Glory to God in heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors. ~ Luke 2:14 (CEB)
All glory belongs to you, God. For your actions are awesome! You are great. And you have favored us with so many great gifts -- especially your Son, Christ Jesus, who offers peace to all individuals, groups, and nations who would receive it. Sometimes I'm inclined to choose violent solutions instead of your peace. My thoughts are violent. My words are violent. And sometimes even my actions turn violent. Lord, I need to be converted some more so that the Christmas peace you extended would ooze from my life. I want to become a great example of peace so that the people around me would see your mighty works and praise your unequaled greatness. Amen.
TRANSLATIONS
ABP = Authorized Boydston Paraphrase — my own freestyle biblical adaptation — somewhere between paraphrase, commentary, and sermon
CEB = Common English Bible (©2011, the Common English Bible)
CEV = Contemporary English Version (©1995, American Bible Society)
MSG = The Message (©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson)
NIRV = New International Reader's Version (©1996, 1998, Biblica)
NIV = New International Version (©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011, Biblica)
NLT = New Living Translation (©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, Tyndale House Foundation)
