Seek the peace of the nation

This was the lord’s instruction to the children of Israel when they were captives in the city of Babylon. As Christians, this scripture also emphasizes the relevance of our sojourn in the nation where we live. In our case, we’re not in captivity, but the lord has placed us here with the same expectation. Put simply, we’re responsible to God and to the country to seek its peace and pray to the lord for it. Firstly, he said we should seek the peace of the country. The word “peace” here doesn’t just refer to calmness and quietness or absence of hostilities. It derives from the Hebrew word “shalom” which means completeness, wholeness, perfect wellbeing, welfare, prosperity, and health. Seeking the peace of a nation means doing everything possible to have a nation where everything works and guarantees the comfort of its people. So, it doesn’t matter where you are, or what you do, this is a call to you as an individual to seek the progress of the nation. The lord also charged us to pray for the country. This is our solemn and sovereign responsibility. “To pray” means to intervene or to meditate. That means you should intervene in prayer for the nation. We all want to be able to move in our streets freely and fearless of molestation; we want to commute on better roads; we want law and order without abuse of human rights; we want a cleaner environment; we want to put a stop to frequent electric power interruption and minimize the use of generation; we went to see a better nation where its citizens are treated with respect and decency. These are a few of some of the things we should pray about, and we must do so without ceasing (1Thessalonians 5:17); we must not give up!

         Therefore, beginning from your immediate sphere of contact, do your bit to ensure the peace and prosperity of the country. Remember, in the peace of the nation is your own peace as an individual. Therefore, seek the peace of our country; work and pray for her wellbeing for if things go well for the country, things will go well for you.