Start With Peace — The Transforming Power of Blessing (Part 2 of 5)
An Invitation Into Luke 10 Living: A Journey Into Blessing
There is something beautifully simple about the way Jesus sends out the seventy-two in Luke 10. He doesn’t give them complicated instructions, theological talking points, or persuasive strategies. He begins with a single, gentle command:
“When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’”
— Luke 10:5
Before preaching.
Before healing.
Before teaching.
Before anything else…
Bring PEACE.
I find that profoundly moving. Jesus — fully aware of the urgency of the harvest — still insists that the first step in reaching people is not pressure, but peace. Not intensity, but gentleness. Not argument, but blessing.
And here’s the beauty: Anyone can do this. Every believer, in every place, at any moment. This is where the Luke 10 lifestyle begins.
The Power of Speaking Peace Into People’s Lives
When Jesus invites us to bless others, He’s asking us to carry His heart into the spaces we occupy. He’s not asking us to manufacture anything. He’s asking us to release what He already gave us.
Jesus said: “My peace I give you; My peace I leave with you.” — John 14:27
Please don’t miss this: We can't give peace unless we first carry peace. But once we carry it — we can give it away endlessly.
Blessing someone — silently or aloud — is simply partnering with God’s heart for them. It’s praying: “Lord, let Your peace, Your love, Your goodness rest here.”
And Scripture tells us this matters deeply to God. Paul wrote to Timothy, “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people…” — 1 Timothy 2:1
First of all. Not second. Not when we feel spiritual enough. Prayer — blessing — intercession for others — is our beginning point.
I want to invite you to pause for a minute and consider the power of a blessing. Have you personally experienced a situation in which you felt anxious, uncertain, frustrated, sad, but someone comes and speaks a blessing over you, then you felt the peace of God falling over you, bringing assurance, increased faith, and perhaps joy?
Yes! Blessing shifts the atmosphere. Blessing softens the soil of the heart. Blessing prepares people to experience the love of God. And quite honestly, most of the time, a blessing changes us before it changes anyone else.
Carrying Peace Into Our Everyday Places
One of the most freeing truths about this first step we’re exploring is this: You can bless people anywhere — and they never even need to know.
You don’t need perfect words.
You don’t need special training.
You don’t even need to close your eyes.
You can bless…
the spouse that feels distant or worried
the child struggling with confidence
the neighbor walking her dog
the coworker who seems withdrawn
the friend carrying hidden grief
the person who just irritated you in traffic
or the cashier who looks exhausted
You whisper silently: “Lord, let Your peace rest on them today.” And Heaven hears you! Jesus invites us into a lifestyle of partnership with God and asking His blessing to rest on every person and place you encounter throughout the day. A way of living that is not dramatic or loud, but deeply powerful and quietly transformational.
Blessing Prepares the Ground for the Kingdom
When Jesus tells the 72 to speak peace, He is inviting them to shift spiritual climates before shifting conversations. Please reflect on this:
Peace is not passive. Peace is a force. Peace is the presence of Jesus Himself.
Where peace rests, hearts calm. Where peace rests, fear loosens its grip. Where peace rests, people feel safe enough to be open. Where peace rests, spiritual hunger awakens.
Proverbs 11:11 says: “By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted.” Imagine that — cities can change through blessing. Not through strategic planning alone. Not through programs alone. But through true followers of Christ who speak peace into their families, church communities, blessing their neighbors, workplaces, schools, and even into leaders. Yes! When you bless, you are sowing seeds into soil you may never see fully — but God sees it, and you can fully trust that He multiplies it.
Blessing Those Who Bless You… and Those Who Don’t
Jesus takes this step further in Matthew 5:44: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
And suddenly this first step of “blessing” becomes not just beautiful — but deeply challenging.
Blessing the people who bless us? Easy!
Blessing the people who frustrate us, oppose us, misunderstand us, or hurt us? This is where the Kingdom becomes real.
When we bless those who have wounded us, those blessings begin to heal our own hearts as much as theirs. And they align us with the heart of Jesus, who from the cross prayed for His executioners, saying, “Father, forgive them.” (Luke 23:34) Blessing is not weakness. Blessing is courage cloaked in kindness.
Forgiveness and Blessing: A Sacred Partnership
Simply put: You cannot carry peace while holding tight to offense. You cannot bless freely while clinging to resentment. Offense and resentment are in direct opposition of the heart of God for you and those in your life. This is why Jesus ties blessing and forgiveness together throughout the Gospels. Indeed, we must forgive those who have wronged us so we can bless them with Christ’s love rather than carry bitterness toward them.
To be clear, forgiving someone does not excuse what they did to hurt you; however, it does release you from the weight of it! You can see it as the means by which your spiritual well can be “unclogged” allowing peace to flow through it again. Oftentimes, the one you mostly need to forgive is yourself.
Blessing as a Way of Life
So, what happens when blessing becomes your default response?
You become more like Jesus.
You become slower to anger and quicker to compassion.
You become gentler in your responses.
You start noticing people who used to blend into the background.
You develop spiritual awareness — a sense of who God is drawing near.
You begin to carry hope into hopeless spaces without even speaking a word.
I encourage you to pause and meditate on what God may be speaking to you about this right now. What impact might this transformation have in your life and the way you engage with those around you? Imagine the wave of peace, compassion, and spiritual curiosity that would ripple throughout your circle of influence that would begin to expand more and more? You may want to journal here.
As Romans 12:21 reminds us: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Blessing is one of the simplest ways to do this, and you can begin today!
Let Us Pray
Lord, make us people of peace. Open our eyes to see the faces around us — not as interruptions but as invitations. Teach us to bless quietly and boldly. Heal our hearts where forgiveness is needed so that peace can flow freely through us. Let every place we enter be touched by Your presence. And let Your peace rest on every person You place in our path. Amen.
Grace and Peace,
Paola
