In conversations about faith and ministry, we often hear the phrase “keeping the peace.” But the gospel invites us to something deeper than peacekeeping. It calls us to peacemaking.

Peacekeeping protects comfort. Peacemaking pursues truth. The two are not the same.

Too often, silence is mistaken for peace. Hard conversations are avoided, injustice is overlooked and unhealthy systems remain untouched because confronting them feels disruptive. But the ministry of Jesus shows us that true peace sometimes begins with disruption. 

Righteous Anger

There is a moment in the Gospels when Jesus walks into the temple courts and overturns the tables of those exploiting worshippers. This was not uncontrolled anger—it was righteous anger. Scripture reminds us, “In your anger do not sin” (Ephesians 4:26).

Anger itself is not the problem. In fact, there are moments when anger is the appropriate response. If we never feel anger in the face of injustice, we risk becoming indifferent to suffering. The real question is what we do with that anger. 

Left unchecked, anger can become destructive. But when surrendered to God, it can become a force that moves us toward justice and restoration. Jesus confronted hypocrisy not to humiliate the religious leaders, but because he loved them and longed for them to see the truth.

His heart becomes clear when he cries out, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, … how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings” (Matthew 23:37).

Even his rebuke was rooted in compassion. 

Seeing Clearly

 If we want to move forward as a church and as a movement, we must be willing to see clearly. We cannot address what we refuse to acknowledge. Sometimes injustice is obvious, but other times it hides within traditions, assumptions or systems that have gone unquestioned for years.

Following God requires courage to ask difficult questions: Where have we grown comfortable? Where might God be inviting us to change?

Scripture gives us another powerful example of courage in the story of Esther.

Esther lived in the palace, positioned as a queen. Yet when injustice threatened her people, she faced a terrifying choice. Approaching the king without invitation could cost her life. Remaining silent would mean watching her people perish.

Through her cousin, Mordecai, a challenge reached her: perhaps she had come to her royal position “for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14).

Esther realized that silence would not protect her. The moment required courage. So, she stepped forward in obedience to God, even though the risk was real. Her response has echoed through generations: “If I perish, I perish” (Esther 4:16).

Her courage did not come from certainty of the outcome, but from faithfulness to the call. 

Positioned for a Purpose

Esther’s story is not only about a queen long ago. It is also about us. You are where you are today for a reason—not by coincidence, not by accident. God has placed each of us in specific communities, ministries and relationships in this season of history.

Have you asked him why?

When people feel frustrated in a church or ministry, the instinct is often to leave and search for somewhere that better meets their expectations. But what if God placed you there not simply to receive—but to bring transformation?

What if the place that feels uncomfortable is exactly where God is inviting you to step forward in courage?

History shows that change rarely comes from spectators. It comes from people willing to obey God even when the cost is uncertain. We can watch from a distance or, like Esther, we can step forward and become catalysts for courage and change. 

An Invitation

Catherine Booth, co-Founder of The Salvation Army, once said, “If we are to better the future, we must disturb the present.” That is exactly what the early Salvationists did. They challenged social norms, confronted injustice and stepped into the hardest places of their communities. They disturbed the present because they believed God was calling them to build a better future.

That calling did not end with them. Each generation must ask again: Are we willing to confront what needs to change? We cannot become so comfortable with today that we stop thinking about tomorrow.

Look at your church. Look at your community. Is this the environment you want your children and grandchildren to inherit? If the answer is no, then God may be inviting you to become part of the change.

Transformation rarely begins with institutions. It begins with individuals who are willing to listen to God, step out in faith and move forward together.

There are moments in the life of the church when the waters become rough. Change shakes things. Honest conversations create tension. Old structures may shift. The storm must happen. But storms do not mean destruction.

When the disciples feared the storm that threatened their boat, Jesus stood and spoke the words, “Peace, be still” (Mark 4:39 KJV).

The same truth holds today. The church is not sustained by our strategies or traditions. It is sustained by Christ himself. The boat may be shaken, but it will not be destroyed—because Jesus is the one leading it.

The question is whether we are ready to follow when he changes direction.

So, here is the invitation: Do not watch from the shore. Step forward in obedience. Disturb the present. Trust God with the future. Because perhaps you, too, have been placed exactly where you are for such a time as this. 

Lieutenant Mirna Dirani is the resource officer, immigrant and refugee services, at Harbour Light Ministries in Toronto.

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