‘Their’ Peace Versus ‘Yours’
When does ‘their’ peace matter more than ‘your’ peace? I am sure you are ready with a pat answer and you are probably thinking that your peace matters more than theirs; maybe you are saying, ‘who cares about them?, I only care about myself.’
What if ‘Their’ refers to a nation; will your answer change or are you still sticking to your guns maintaining that your peace matters more that your nation’s peace.
Too many give little to no consideration to the state of their nation preferring to only focus on their immediate concerns. This results in people having a view about their nation but unwilling to vote, they have a view about the issues the nation is facing but remain ignorant of their role in building society. They have a view about the educational sector but consider themselves too busy to become a school governor or even attend parent-teacher’s evenings.
Every government sector wants more money with people ready to strike for more pay but we must consider where that money is going to come from, what will give for us to all get what we want? Where will money be pulled from to invest in the sectors we believe needs more?
Do we have the capacity to create additional funds to meet the increasing demands in our society? These and more questions should matter to us because our peace and circumstances often depend on those of our nations.
Wishing your nations and leaders well is ultimately wishing yourself well. Getting involved in politics, governance, and doing your bit at your local levels is the same as wishing yourself well.
Messing your neighbourhood with crime, drugs and guns or even something as simple as throwing your wastes on the ground instead of taking them home or putting them in designated bins, destroying the flowers in public areas are all acts of self-sabotage. The beauty, peace, safety and prosperity of your nation or neighbourhood is first enjoyed by you so it is self-serving for you to stand up for things that will enhance them and against anyone that will seek to destroy them.
Harrogate stray lined with cherry blossom trees is popular with everyone especially when it is in full bloom. It’s the perfect setting for family pictures, wedding pictures and a photographer’s dream. In recent years we have had vandalism with the trees being attacked by unthinking people who perhaps don’t understand the value of the beauty or the importance of tourism to local economy. Because it’s there all the time, their perception of its value is low.
Many people in the UK complain about the National Health Service (NHS) and perhaps, sometimes rightly so because of the long waiting times. The same people when forced to experience health care in many other parts of the world will come back with an appreciation of the NHS and a new realisation that the health care we all want costs a lot of money. That’s not to say we shouldn’t expect more but it is to learn to weigh all facts and consider our roles in society.
There was a recent debate about whether the government could intervene and tell people what to eat with some of the panellists saying the public would not appreciate being told to change their eating and drinking habits. If the government is too scared to tell us to get our acts together for fear of upsetting us, the downsides are the preventable diseases that will overwhelm the health service making it harder to find resources for other health essentials.
The United States has created headlines in recent years because of how close the key players allow the nation to get to defaulting on their loans and force stalemates ignoring the impact on the perception of their ability to repay debts which might increase the cost of future borrowings due to lower trust factor. The negotiating points are often based on the interests of a few versus the national interest.
On the 29th of May 2023, a new president and vice president will be inaugurated in Nigeria after a hard fought and controversial battle. Depending on the sides people are, some will wish the new government well while others won’t not considering what it means for them personally.
Oppositions may seek to undermine the efforts of the new government’s cabinet, critics may be unfair and many parts of the system – judicial, house of assembly, senate, and house of representatives – may become uncooperative. Supporters may turn intentional blind eyes on poor performances and decisions.
What all these mean is that we can destroy our own nation by pulling it down brick by brick simply because we only care about our own peace, political party, personal agendas or opinions.
No wonder there is a verse in the Holy Bible that encourages the people to pray for the peace of Jerusalem because in her peace lies theirs as well.
Regardless of your faith or beliefs, the peace and prosperity of your nation is directly correlated to yours. My encouragement is that we all start to act in the best interests of the nations you call home, the companies and businesses that pay your wages and the communities you live in. We must join hands to build what we desire.
Thanks for reading and sharing my post; have a great week.
