Be Still

Be Still

We are currently in an unprecedented time of uncertainty in our world and many people are struggling more than ever with fear and anxiety.  I myself have struggled most of my life with worry and anxiety completely separate of a global pandemic.  I am a very type A individual and really struggle with trying to control outcomes in my life as much as I am able. As a result, I really struggle with the concept of “giving it up to God.” However, I desperately see the need for it in my daily life, which is why Psalm 46:10 has been my life verse. “Be still, and know that I am God!” 

Be Still...

Be Still...

    I tried to take 30 seconds after writing that word to simply be still. But I can hear my older boys wrestling upstairs and wonder if I should break it up. I hear my youngest son in the next room beginning to worry over something and wonder if I should step in before he has a meltdown. I know the yard needs to be mowed today and I wonder how long it will take and how I should plan my day to get everything done. On a typical day, pre-COVID, it would be wondering how to get the boys to and from school and how to schedule getting them to practices and games, worry about my patients at work, worry about how to get family time in during our busy lives, on top of all those other worries.  So it makes me think that the silver lining from this Shelter at Home order is just that. It is giving me the opportunity to BE STILL. I still have worries and a to-do list, but many of the daily worries have been removed giving me time to learn and focus on being still.

    But did you know that Psalm 46:10 is not the first or only time that God commands us to Be Still? In Zechariah 2:13 “Be still before the LORD, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.” Exodus 14:14 states “The LORD will fight for you while you keep still.”  Habakkuk 2:20 entreats us that “The LORD is in his holy temple. All the earth – be quiet in his presence.” This clearly indicates that this is something that God really wants me to learn. The LORD is fighting for me in ways that I can't see because I am moving too fast to really see Him. What battles is the LORD fighting for you? Can you be still and see how He will be victorious?

    As I sit here trying to discern ways to be still, I am overcome with how difficult it is for me. My personality rebels against it.  But God has told us time and time again, that we alone are not enough, and we must rely on Him to fight these battles within us and around us. We need Him in all ways and for always. As we learned in the previous lessons, the Lord will rescue us from any storm. Jesus simply spoke the words “Be Still!” and quieted the storm that was tossing the disciples on the waves. Psalm 107:28-29 tells us, “Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper, the waves of the sea were hushed.” Isn't that a true picture. Most of the worries and fears in our life feel like they are screaming at us so that we can hear nothing else but worry and self doubt, but God can turn it into a whisper. A single word from our Lord can calm any storm, even the ones raging inside of us. “God is our refuge and strength, a great help in times of distress. Therefore we will not be frightened when the earth roars, when the mountains shake to the depths of the seas, when its waters roar and rage, when the mountains tremble despite their pride. - Psalm 46:1-3” We don't have to know how to Be Still, we just have to slow down long enough to learn to rely on Him and not ourselves. Let Him calm to storm in you, and around you. What storm is happening in your life, in your heart, that you can BE STILL and let Him calm?

   Sometimes we need everything to stop, in order to put our focus on the Lord. In our fast paced world, sometimes that feels like an impossibility. It is easy to focus on all the things we are losing during this time of quarantine, but there is no other time in my life where I have been able to find this time to stop and slow down. I wouldn't let myself. But I have been able to use this time to focus on the Lord. 1 Samuel 12:16 “Now then, stand still and see this great thing the LORD is about to do before your eyes!” Have I been missing the great things the Lord has been doing because I haven't been able to BE STILL? As Moses was leading the Israelites out of Egypt he said “Don't be afraid. Just stand STILL and watch the LORD rescue you today. - Ex 14:13” Can you BE STILL and see one thing that God has rescued you from during this time?

    Worry often comes because we are being distracted by the world and not simply being still and listening to the Lord. I think of the story in Luke 10 about Mary and Martha, while Martha worried about all the things she had to do, Mary simply sat at the Lord's feet and listened to Him. Martha felt like Mary was shirking responsibility, but the Lord scolded her telling her “You worry and fuss about a lot of things. But there's only one thing you need. Mary has chosen what is better, and it is not to be taken away from her.” I am a Martha, but I need to be more like Mary. What is one thing that you can put aside until tomorrow to make time for the LORD today?

  In this time of change and uncertainty, one thing remains steadfast. We must wait patiently and trust the Lord. Psalm 37:7 “Be still in the presence of the LORD, and wait patiently for him to act.” Waiting can be difficult, but it is another way we are called to BE STILL. “ Psalm 62: 5-6 “Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken.” When it feels like all we want to do is scream out in fear, remember to wait quietly for he is our rock.  Isaiah 40:31 reminds us “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint.” We can't find peace if we are always busy doing things. We need to slow down, BE STILL, and allow Christ to give us peace that the world simply can not. I know you are weary, I know you are afraid, but remember 1 Peter 5:7 calls upon us to “cast all your anxiety on Him because he cares for you.” If God is for us, what can stand against us? Take time today to write down all your worries on a piece of paper. Sit in a quiet room and BE STILL while you spend time praying over these worries. Take time being with HIM and allowing HIM to give you peace. When you are finished, throw away or destroy that paper, those worries are not yours any longer. Remember John 16:33 tells us “I have told you these things, so that  in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”