I am troubled about the impending war with Iraq. I am worried about young people I know who are serving in the military and have been sent to the Middle East. I am worried that if a war begins, terrorists will begin unleashing a host of things close by. I am worried about how my children feel about this - my 9 year old daughter wondered why the president didn't follow the same procedure she was trained in at her school to be a peer mediator whenever conflict broke out among her peers. I am deeply concerned how people who wish to follow Jesus seem to be led more by recent political statements and maneuverings rather than seeking to discern the ancient truths from our holy scriptures. But then, unless we have been studying and discussing these on a regular basis before a crisis, we don't know how to use them when a crisis arrives.

What would God have me do? Many of us are answering the question of what God would have George Bush do. But what is God calling me to do? - to speak not with anxiousness, but with confidence in the truth of the love and forgiveness of God's human presence in Jesus Christ. I will trust God enough to spend these days in praying for enemies in whatever package they are present to me. I will accept responsibility to rebuild and to share suffering with anyones who have been hurt by the consequences of myself and my country.

This is my calling right now.