And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
In 1955, Sy Miller and Jill Jackson, wrote the song "Let There Be Peace on Earth." That same year, they introduced
the song to a group of teenagers selected from their high schools to
attend a week-long retreat in California. Sy Miller wrote in his own words what happened: “One summer evening in 1955, a group of 180 teenagers of all races and
religions, meeting at a workshop high in the California mountains locked
arms, formed a circle and sang a song of peace. They felt that singing
the song, with its simple basic sentiment – 'Let there be peace on earth
and let it begin with me,' helped to create a climate for world peace
and understanding."
When I was in elementary school, our chorus sang the song "Let There Be Peace on Earth." I was chosen to be part of a group that sang the descant on the last chorus of the song. I remember singing that song at MYF meetings - yes, I'm old enough to remember when we were the Methodist Church! I remember singing it in church as a young mother. And I still enjoy singing -- from memory -- that song that I learned so many, many years ago. I was a child of the '60s but must admit that I did not know about all of the strife and war that was waging in the world at the time. And certainly during these times of international and domestic strife, this song has special meaning. But there's one phrase that resonates with me -- "and let it begin with me." My prayer today, as we light the second Advent candle of peace, is that we remember, as today's devotional writer wrote, that "Jesus came to bring God's peace into chaotic hearts and a fearful world. May we all make room in ourselves that God's peace may live in us and hence through us."
Today's Advent Photo of the Day
#peace #pictureadvent
This is one of my first songbooks and probably the first place, besides singing this song in my elementary chorus, that I sang and played along "Let There Be Peace On Earth." It was the Genesis Songbook compiled by, none other than, Carlton "Sam" Young. The copyright on the book is 1973 -- my senior year in high school.
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