The meaning of this Latin phrase may surprise you. I saw it on the back of a truck while waiting in the pick up line, I noticed it on the back of a truck in front of me, right under the US Marine sticker. Intrigued, I looked it up.
So Vis Pacem Para Bellum means, "If you want peace, prepare for war." I didn't understand at the time how this phrase was going to play out in my life the next week.
My son, he's currently 11 and in his first year of middle school, has been under attack. Now I know these are inflammatory words and many people are quick to blame unpleasant circumstances on Satan's opposition. This is not that. I have learned from years of experience how to tell if situations are simply a result of circumstance, or even a result of my own sin. When it's the enemy, it's sure to involve a lie. That's what's happening to my child. He is having trouble shutting down the lies, even though all evidence points to the truth. Ever been there? I have...too many times to count.
Unfortunately, the enemy doesn't wait until we are adults to try to get a grip on our thoughts. He is decidedly not a gentleman. Jesus calls Satan the father of lies while in contrast Jesus is the embodiment of the Way, the Truth, and the Light. When lies are brought to the light we see more clearly and they loose their power in our recognition of the truth.
That seems to wrap things up neatly, but it's not really neat. Warfare never is, and warfare is exactly what the Bible says we are in ( see Ephesians 6). The Psalms hold some of my favorite go to prayers. That warrior poet David had such a way with words and swords. He fought both spiritual and physical battles well.
In teaching my son how to take his thoughts captive, it's been a refresher course for me. If, like me, you needed a reminder that sometimes if you want peace you have to go to war, I hope you take these verses to heart.
Jesus did not leave us helpless. It's important to remember that we are on the winning side and the power we wield is not our own. This passage from Psalm 18 paints the picture of God supplying everything we need.
"the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless.
He made my feet like the feet of a deer
and set me secure on the heights.
He trains my hands for war,
so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
You have given me the shield of Your salvation,
and Your right hand supported me,
and Your gentleness made me great.
For You equipped me with strength for the battle;
You made those who rise against me sink under me.
Tell me that you noticed the obvious star of this story. Disclaimer: it's not me, and it isn't you either. God is the only hero, but isn't it so cool that He lends us His strength and trains us for war. We get to participate. Even though He doesn't need us; He wants us.
Every day there are things that we don't see. God does. I've adopted a verse from this passage as a prayer to remind me that if I want peace today, I need to be prepared for war. This is the Message paraphrase of verse 32:
"He armed me, then aimed me in the right direction."
I imagine you are like me. I can spend my energy in all the wrong directions. I get caught up fighting things that aren't worth fighting and I miss things that I should be fighting. God can both arm me and prepare me for battle, and aim me in the right direction.
It's important to remember that inside this daily battle, our own thoughts are often what betray us. That's why Paul instructs us in 2 Corinthians 10 that we need to take our thoughts captive in this battle. Our enemy is real and searching for our weakness, but I myself can give him a lot to work with. Sometimes I am my own worst enemy. I have to be aware and willing to fight my own flesh.
Take this prayer into next week with you.
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