Blessed are the peacemakers

I spent a wonderful evening in Kabul with my friend last night. The hours flew by and was a welcome change to the busyness of the command back on the camp. Like so many other times, our conversations gravitated to the war and whether or not there was hope for his country. This man, now a quiet and well mannered professional business man, was once a blood thirsty killer. As a teenager, he fought with his father against the Soviets, and lived to inflict pain and death on the enemies of Afghanistan.

Now, in 2010, with Afghanistan again in a fight for survival, he says he cannot bear to see an animal mistreated nor hunt on the lands he used to roam as a young man. An interesting view of a warrior who has shed the blood of men and had his own blood spilled. The contrast is amazing.

I've seen the pictures of him...soldier of fortune stuff from the 80's. These here could easily be replaced with his, but I will keep them off this blog for his privacy. Shaggy beard gone now, AK-74 turned in for a laptop, hate replaced by a soft heart for the hurting people around him. He said, "I really believe that the peacemakers will be blessed."

Well, that was encouraging enough for me and a good reminder of Jesus' declaration. Like my warrior friend, I'm making peace today, here in the center of turmoil and chaos.