“What if we don’t need to pull it together ourselves as much as we need to be “peaced” together by another?”

Wow—I immediately resonated with this question from Jenny Gehman’s Little Life Words. For me, life has felt rather piecemeal these days—fragmented, random, “not done according to a plan but done at different times in different ways” as the Cambridge Dictionary puts it. I love the freedom and variety of different projects with different timelines and different themes and working with different people, seeing different friends at different times depending on our different schedules. That kind of flexibility is a wonderful gift!

But I also sometimes wonder how everything fits together. How can I have a sense of wholeness when my life seems to be made up of so many different moving parts? Where is the focus in the midst of all the fragments?

I love the way Jenny addresses this—loved it so much that I asked to reprint her reflection, and she generously agreed. So please enjoy this guest post by my writer friend, Jenny Gehman, who is also a spiritual director. At the end of her post, you’ll find a brief bio plus links to more information on spiritual direction and her Little Life Words: Substance for Your Soul.

Peaced Together

by Jenny Gehman

What if we don’t need to pull it together ourselves as much as we need to be “peaced” together by another?

I often bless others by saying “Peace to all your parts.” Perhaps I’ve even said it to you.

There are several words for peace in Scripture. The one we may know best is shalom. But today I want to focus on another: eiréné. Defined as wholeness, eiréné means when all essential parts are joined together. It’s the opposite of being pulled apart.

Selah.
Pause and think about that.

When a woman, long-suffering and unsolved, came to Jesus to steal a healing, he called her out. She wasn’t going to get away without a blessing. “Eiréné,” he spoke to her.

“Daughter,” he said with tender awe in his voice, “your faith has healed you. Go in peace (go in eiréné) and be freed from your suffering” (Luke 8:43-48).

Be freed from that which has fragmented you.

I love the wording the Amplified Bible uses. Instead of simply saying go in peace, it says go into peace. As if it’s waiting right there for you.

May you go into a place where you’re pulled together and not apart. And may you be freed from your suffering.

I think of the strong admonishment in anxious hours that we need to pull it together! Meaning, we need to clamp down and calm down and control our frightened feelings.

But what if we don’t need to pull it together ourselves as much as we need to be peaced together by another? What if the fragments are too far flung for us to gather on our own? Might the God who knit us together in the first place, “peace” us together now (Psalm 139)?

“God made my life complete,” the psalmist once said, “when I placed all the pieces before him” (Psalm 18:20 The Message).

Writing/Reflection Prompt: From Jenny Gehman’s Little Life Words:

Ponder: What is pulling you apart? What parts need to be “peaced” together?

Practice: As a daily act of prayer this week, present your pieces to God.

Play: Our song of the week is a blessing sung over us: “Grace and Peace” by Fernando Ortega.

Pray: “Peace” me together.

Jenny Gehman is a spiritual director, freelance writer, retreat facilitator, and East Coast Rep for Mennonite Women USA. Passionate about the healing hospitality of God, Jenny finds deep joy in creating safe spaces for others to set their souls down and sift through what’s there. Jenny makes her home in the Amish country of Pennsylvania with her husband, son, and well-loved visitors from around the world.

For more on spiritual direction, please see Jenny’s answers to some frequently asked questions. You can also see more samples of her writing and sign up for your own free subscription to her Little Life Words on her website.

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