BOOM!

The noises of Camp Ripley have been a constant companion these last few days. At the park, as we sleep, as we talk on the phone, as I write my sermon, I hear distant rumbles at times. Then I hear a boom that shakes the floor and startles me out of my chair. Now, these noises are really only a bit annoying. I know they are the noise of military practice that prepares our troops for the work they must do. I know they do not affect our safety or even really the relative peace of our home. But they have given me a new awareness and sympathy for those who live with the reality of war and violence each day. I take forgranted the safety and peace that comes with living in America, in Minnesota, here in the north country. But what would it be like to live with the noise of blasts and explosions each day, to worry about the safety of one's loved ones each time they left your side? To wake each night worried that your house might become a target of someone's violence? Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers"... Blessed are the men and women who work to make our world a more stable, peaceful place. Blessed are those who shelter the refugees of war and violence. Blessed are those who soothe away the nightmares of children who have seen too much. Blessed are those who work for God's peace in a world that is comfortable with violence.