The Sermon Story

Everyone says they want peace. Yet our homes, churches and nations keep sliding into conflict. Jesus called peacemakers blessed, but he never said peacemaking would be easy. These seven stories about peace and war, retold in our own words, range from gentle parables to hard truths about what war really costs. Each closes with a takeaway for sermons, classes or personal reflection. Stories in this collection: The King's Contest: Painting a Picture of Peace The Weight of a Snowflake The Hidden Cost of 'Smart' Wars A War Correspondent on the Myths of War The Priest and the Principal A Chair in the Shade: Monks Brawl at the Holy Sepulchre Martin Luther King Jr. on Loving Your Enemies ──────── ✝ ──────── The King's Contest: Painting a Picture of Peace A parable. There was once a king who offered a prize to the artist who could paint the best picture of peace. Many artists tried, and paintings arrived from all over the kingdom. The king looked carefully at every one,...

Everyone says they want peace. Yet our homes, churches and nations keep sliding into conflict. Jesus called peacemakers blessed, but he never said peacemaking would be easy. These seven stories about peace and war, retold in our own words, range from gentle parables to hard truths about what war really costs. Each closes with a takeaway for sermons, classes or personal reflection. Stories in this collection: The King's Contest: Painting a Picture of Peace The Weight of a Snowflake The Hidden Cost of 'Smart' Wars A War Correspondent on the Myths of War The Priest and the Principal A Chair in the Shade: Monks Brawl at the Holy Sepulchre Martin Luther King Jr. on Loving Your Enemies ──────── ✝ ──────── The King's Contest: Painting a Picture of Peace A parable. A king offered a prize to the artist who could paint the perfect picture of peace. Hundreds of paintings arrived, and in the end the king narrowed them down to two. The first showed a still mountain lake under a blue...

Everyone says they want peace. Yet our homes, churches and nations keep sliding into conflict. Jesus called peacemakers blessed, but he never said peacemaking would be easy. These seven stories about peace and war, retold in our own words, range from gentle parables to hard truths about what war really costs. Each closes with a takeaway for sermons, classes or personal reflection. Stories in this collection: The King's Contest: Painting a Picture of Peace The Weight of a Snowflake The Hidden Cost of 'Smart' Wars A War Correspondent on the Myths of War The Priest and the Principal A Chair in the Shade: Monks Brawl at the Holy Sepulchre Martin Luther King Jr. on Loving Your Enemies ──────── ✝ ──────── The King's Contest: Painting a Picture of Peace A parable. A king offered a prize to the artist who could paint the perfect picture of peace. Hundreds of paintings arrived, and in the end the king narrowed them down to two. The first showed a still mountain lake under a blue...