Walk for Peace

This weekend in Raleigh, something quietly powerful is happening. A walk!

A group of Buddhist monks from Texas are passing through our city as part of a 120-day journey to Washington, DC. Step by step, they’re walking over 2,300 miles across 10 states, carrying a simple message: peace, loving-kindness, and compassion.

They describe their walk this way: “We walk not to protest, but to awaken the peace that already lives within each of us. The Walk for Peace is a simple yet meaningful reminder that unity and kindness begin within each of us and can radiate outward to families, communities, and society as a whole.”

There’s something deeply moving about that. No megaphones. No shouting. Just bodies in motion, choosing sacrifice over comfort as a sign of hope. It’s a reminder that peace is not just something we argue for—it’s something we practice.

Witnessing this, I couldn’t help but think about Jesus.

It’s easy to miss in the Gospels, but most of Jesus’ ministry happened in a relatively small area around the Sea of Galilee. And yet, a disproportionate amount of the Gospel story focuses on the final stretch of his life. Luke tells us that at a decisive moment, “Jesus set his face toward Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51).

That sentence carries weight. Jesus had spent years preaching, healing, and embodying God’s love—but this moment marked a turning point. He began a long walk from Galilee to Jerusalem. A journey that might have taken a couple of weeks, longer still as he stopped to teach, to heal, to show mercy. When he finally arrived, it was six days before Passover. One week before the cross.

In many ways, his entire life had been leading toward this final walk. He walked toward the center of conflict, and also toward the center of redemption. Toward love that refuses to turn back. It was his Walk for Peace—not the absence of tension, but the presence of sacrificial, relentless love.

There’s a model for us here.

What is the vision God has placed in our hearts for the world? What kind of peace, healing, or justice do we long to see? And more importantly—are we willing to walk toward it? Slowly. Faithfully. Sacrificially.

Because the way of Jesus has never been about quick wins or loud victories. It’s been about putting one foot in front of the other, trusting that God meets us on the road.

May we be people who walk that way.

Will you Pray with me?

At the same time I was watching these amazing models of humanity and love and peace… we were watching the news of yet another horrific death in Minneapolis at the hands of ICE agents. One of these groups knows Jesus better, and they’re not even Christian.

God,

Help us.

Amen.

“Listening is the first act of loving.”

Steph