It was a year and a half ago that I talked with Matt Chandler in my office. Our conversation was for an interview to post on the Barclay Press web site. Matt lived in Baghdad, Iraq, as part of a Christian Peacemaker Team (CPT) both before and after that interview.

Matt is a low-key guy who did not capitalize on the drama of living in a war zone and a culture where you are an uninvited infidel. The text version of the interview concludes: “Helping Iraqis live a more peaceful life, helping them understand people from my culture, helping people from my culture understand them—I consider these things as part and parcel of God’s overall mission for this world. …What I’m called to do is to be faithful to God’s leading and at this point God’s leading is for me to serve people who are victims of violence, injustice, and poverty.”

My connection with Matt makes the kidnapping of the four current CPT workers in Baghdad feel more personal. More than a year ago when Matt was still in Iraq he posted “What it means to be a foreigner in Iraq” as a response to an internal CPT discussion.

I believe God is pleased with the work and convictions of Christian Peacemaker Teams.