By Mark E. Lewis, Law Offices of Mark E. Lewis & Associates

What does everyone, including every Miss America contestant ever, want the most? Peace! Or world peace, to be exact. We long for peace in our politics, communities, friendships, and perhaps most of all with our families — especially around the holidays. For Christians, Christmas is a time when we celebrate the miraculous step God took to make peace between Himself and His rebellious creation.

World Peace

In the news this fall has been the ongoing quest for peace in the Middle East. We were excited to celebrate hostages being released and the cessation of fighting and bombing. We hope that tensions will abate and that an agreement is reached and maintained long-term amidst hostile feelings that span thousands of years. To that end, agreements in these types of situations are often solemnized by a legal paper called a treaty.

Might the participants in the Middle East conflict break their treaty? Yes, they might. Details like who is in charge of territory and how each party benefits from the agreement are clearly spelled out. The consequences of breaking the agreement are also made clear for everyone to see.

Family Peace

A good estate plan is a legal piece of paper — a solemn declaration — that can bring peace in the midst of many family conflicts. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. Can contentious family members create conflict even when a good estate plan is in place? Yes. Can a good estate plan that clearly outlines what people are to receive, who is to be in charge of decisions, and what consequences come from challenging the plan greatly reduce the chance of conflict? Absolutely!

A good estate plan, like a good treaty, brings peace… peace of mind to you and peace in reality to the family that you leave behind. Your peace comes from:

Knowing that you’ve saved your beneficiaries from the burden and great expense of a formal probate.

Knowing you have empowered the best people to make decisions on your behalf when you cannot make them for yourself.

Knowing your desires and intentions will have been made clear to your beneficiaries, with a back-up plan in place to support those intentions.

Your family’s peace will come from knowing your desires and intentions clearly. They will know who you want to step up and take charge, and they will know that you planned well so they wouldn’t have to make hard decisions under difficult circumstances.

While Law Offices of Mark E. Lewis & Associates cannot bring about world peace, we have been skillfully drafting documents that support peace in the family for nearly 30 years. We would love to help you create the best gift this holiday season: peace for your family and peace of mind for you.