Better peace with a dry piece of crust ...

Better a dry crust eaten in peace than a house filled with feasting--and conflict. (Proverbs 17:1 NLT)

Peace! What a wonderful word, what a wonderful idea – but not very common. Peace is not common in nations, peace is not common in states, cities, or community groups, and it’s not very common in families. Peace is something everyone wants but not something that people are willing to pay the price to get. They talk about peace and the desire for peace is high, but the sacrifice that people are willing to make to have peace is not as high.

People in our society often desire ‘a house filled with feasting’ instead of ‘a dry crust.’ Humans have a tendency to over-work, over-collect, over-consume and over-indulge all at the cost of peace. Is a ‘house filled with feasting’ really better than a ‘dry crust’?

Solomon looked out over the lives of people and over his life and made this observation: ‘Better a dry crust eaten in peace than a house filled with feasting--and conflict.’ Solomon had a ‘house filled with feasting.’ He had everything. Riches beyond imagination but was there peace? He must have noticed others who had nothing and yet there was peace in their home.

An interesting commentary people often make after having visited a country or village with much less than others have is, ‘they had almost nothing but they were so happy’ and ‘they had joy.’

Proverbs 17:1 is not really about stuff though. This Proverb is about the value of peace. Peace is way better than ‘stuff.’ If a person has a choice between peace or ‘stuff’ – it is wise to choose peace.

What are you willing to change in your life, in your marriage, in your home, in your habits so that you can have peace? Are you willing to make the trade? Will you serve your family so as to have peace? Will you stop demanding your way so that you can have peace? What are you willing to do? Do financial decisions and practices need to change? Do work habits need to change?

Better a dry crust eaten in peace ….

Make your choice today. I know I want peace and I’m willing to change to get it.