Be a Peacemaker

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One evening, in March 2023, I was walking back to my house when I sighted two cars ahead, with a man and a woman standing face-to-face in a heated confrontation. When I got closer, I realised that the argument was about the hitting and denting of the man’s car. I listened keenly to both of them and concluded that the lady was at fault as she had hit the man’s car from behind. Then God asked me to intervene and resolve their problem.

It was getting dark, maybe around 6.45pm. I told the lady that she was at fault and should actually apologise to the man. I then turned to the man and asked him to let the lady go, as I would fully bear the responsibility for repairing his car to his satisfaction. The lady was dumbfounded but the man said that the car belonged to his master and he was just his driver. Then I assured him that I would speak to his master but the lady was free to go.

With hesitation and doubt, the lady entered her car. She appeared not to be sure of what I said I would do. I asked the driver about the owner of the car and he mentioned the name of a prominent pastor of a big church in Anthony Village. He immediately called the pastor and started reporting the incident to him. As he did, I beckoned to him to follow me to my office. They discussed for a long time in Yoruba and, of course, I did not understand them.

Eventually, his master asked him to hand over the phone to me. We exchanged greetings and I introduced myself to him. After that, he asked, “Why did you ask the lady to go and why did you offer to bear the cost of the repairs? Do you know her?” I replied that I had never met either the lady or the driver before, but the Spirit of God had directed me to resolve their problem, maintain peace and set them free. Moreover, the incident had happened in front of my premises and I did not want any fracas around me.

He asked, “Do you mean that you will repair the car for me?” “Yes, I will repair it to your satisfaction to maintain peace.” I answered. Still surprised, the man repeated his previous question, “Do you know this lady?” I replied again that I had never met her and could not recognise her if I saw her again.

The pastor kept quiet for a while and then said, “I will repair my car myself; let the driver bring it.” I thanked him very well for relieving me of that financial burden and asked for his name and phone number. I then handed over the phone to the driver after chatting with his master. He said goodnight to me and stepped out of my office.

That incident ended peacefully that evening. Since then, I have never met the lady or the driver and would not even recognise them, if I see them. Same goes for the pastor. I spoke with him only that night and we have never talked again or met each other. But that experience will be remembered for a long time.by each of us involved.

This reminds me of the sacrifice our Lord Jesus Christ made for us. I Peter 2:24 says, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness…” Jesus died on the cross for our sins and not His own because He was sinless. I was ready to suffer a heavy financial loss because of an accident that did not concern me.

Thank God that the pastor decided to bear the cost of the repairs of the car himself. I believe that, just as God had asked me to bear the cost, He had also asked the pastor to take off the burden from me. To me, it was like when God asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. God just tested his faith. I was ready to spend a good amount of money on that car, but God had only put me to that test, so I could broker peace between the lady and the driver. Nobody knows how their arguments might have ended that night. But my intervention brought peace.

In Matthew 5:9, Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, because they will be called sons of God.” Peacemakers reconcile people to God and to one another. Today, peacemakers are needed all over the world.