Do not be troubled when you see the world call peace what is no peace at all. There is a peace that comes from God, and there is a peace that is merely a truce with sin. Our Lord Himself said He came not to send that kind of peace, but a sword, to sever the diseased limb from the body so that the whole might be saved. You weep over your daughter, and rightly so, for what concord has Christ with Belial? She has chosen a union that is not a marriage, a life that scorns the holy boundaries set by God. And so you see the fruit: isolation, ingratitude, a heart hardened against the family that loves her. This is the evil peace of robbers, an agreement that leads to destruction. Yet do not despair. The sword of Christ’s word divides precisely so that it may heal. Continue to pray, not that God would bless that sinful situation, but that He would shatter it, break the spell, and draw her back into true peace, the peace of reconciliation with Him and with you. The very discord she now sows may, by God’s mercy, become the path to her repentance.
I see your grateful heart for the mercies shown to your son, and I rejoice with you. Every peaceful night, every meal taken without torment, is a sign of the Physician’s tender care. He who has power to heal both body and soul, who grants gifts of healing, some to this one, some to another, is at work. When you pray for his full restoration, you seek what is good. Yet remember that the deepest healing is of the soul, and there the peace of God must rule as umpire. What is that peace? Not a fleeting calm dependent on circumstances, but the very steadfastness of Christ dwelling in the heart. When anxious thoughts wage war, fear, frustration, the memory of setbacks, let the peace of God preside and award the prize to trust and gratitude. This is the peace He left us, not the world’s peace, which is always fragile. So continue to surround your son with prayers, yes, and also with the armor of God, but do not let your own spirit be overthrown by every little storm. The demons see your fear and attack through it. Stand firm, peaceable, and full of thanksgiving, for that batters the enemy more than any torrent of words.
And what of the division in your household? The church greets you again and again with “Peace be unto all,” but that peace must be lived in truth. If you have peace with God but are at war with one another, what gain is there? A body cannot be healthy if one limb is angry with another. The peacemakers are called children of God, but those who stir up strife are doing the devil’s work. Plead with your daughter not with nagging or wrath, but with that holy love that dares to wound in order to cure. Show her the joy of a family united under Christ, where each meal, each outing, is a foretaste of the heavenly banquet. And for your son, do not fear the world’s contempt or the isolation others might plot. God’s angels behold the face of the Father for him. What can man do? Persevere in asking for godly caregivers, for wise advocates, for the restoration of his bonds with his siblings. These are prayers after God’s own heart.
Only hold fast to holiness, without which no one will see the Lord. Not merely physical healing, but that purity of heart and life which befits a temple of the Holy Spirit. Let your peace with all men be wedded to that sanctification. Then nothing, no setback, no wandering child, no spiritual assault, can rob you of the prize. The Lord, who made peace with you by His own will when you were yet His enemy, will bring all things into the order of His peace, if you do not grow weary. For He is not a man that He should lie. He is the God of peace, and He will soon crush Satan under your feet.