Peace in the world

"The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him." - Nahum 1:7

Nobel prizes are awarded each year by the king of Sweden to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to humankind in six different fields: physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine, literature, economics, and peace. In his will, Alfred Nobel directed that his fortune should be used in this manner. Who was this man and why did he choose to so give away his wealth?

Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm, the son of an inventor. He received his early education in nearby St. Petersburg and his training as an engineer in the United States. Then he returned to his native Sweden and in his father’s factory began to experiment with nitroglycerin. Alfred Nobel combined nitroglycerin with an absorbent substance, producing a product that could be used with relative safety which he called dynamite.

He set up factories all over the world and eventually became one of the world’s richest men. But for the rest of his life, he was plagued by poor health and haunted by the realization that his invention had brought death and injury to so many thousands of people. To assuage his guilt, Nobel set up a fund of about $9 million with the intention of using the interest to reward outstanding contributors to the betterment of humanity.

One of the most significant of these six awards is the Nobel Peace Prize, given for the first time in the year 1901. This prize has been given to a wide range of individuals from Jean Henri Dunant, the Swiss founder of the Red Cross, to people such as Albert Schweitzer, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mother Teresa. Every recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize receives a medal and a monetary gift.

Alfred Nobel died in 1896, long before the two world wars that tore our world apart and before the splitting of the atom that put our world at risk of being destroyed by a nuclear holocaust. But one thing is for sure, Nobel understood the importance of having peace rule our world, our lives, our neighborhoods, and our homes.

Peace is one of today’s most sought after commodities, and scores of individuals seek it in different ways. Peace, however, is a very personal matter.

Long ago, Peter, who was in the inner circle of Jesus Christ’s followers, wrote that we should make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with God. Have you discovered that when people are at peace with God, they usually are at peace with others and also at peace with themselves? It is impossible to be at peace with God while you are at war with your spouse.

Peace does not necessarily mean the cessation of difficulty or problems. Rather, it is serenity in the face of the storm and the confident understanding that God will take you through the problem of conflict.

Years ago a certain art school held a contest, and a prize was awarded for the drawing or painting that best depicted peace. The winning entry was a painting of a great storm ravaging a large tree, and on one of the branches was a small bird’s nest. The mother bird had spread her wings over the young and gave them the protection that saved their lives.

That, friend, can be a picture of God’s care for you in the face of the storm. The prophet of old was right when he wrote, "The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him" (Nahum 1:7). - Resource reading: Isaiah 26:1-5

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