Sentinel Watch April 9, 2012 Issue

For Syria, prayers that bring peace

Lynne Buckley-Quirk

Tom Quirk

Recent news reports out of Syria seem to hold little hope for a peaceful solution to the conflict between government forces and opposing rebels—a conflict that has escalated to include constant bombardment, civilian deaths, and the threat of civil war.

It can be tempting to think, “This is nothing new.” Conflicts in the Middle East have been going on for thousands of years—if governments and influential institutions haven’t found solutions to end the hostilities, what can we as individuals do?

That was how I numbly thought about the Middle East—until a couple of years ago at Christmas, when I was reading the biblical account of the birth of Christ Jesus. As I read the God-sent message of “on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14), the light dawned! I realized that the message wasn’t telling of a promise yet to come at some unknown time. It was a proclamation that with the arrival of God’s promised son came His great gift of peace on earth and goodwill among all people, right then and for all time to come.