Be Still and Know

Psalm 46:10

 Be still, and know that I am God:

 I will be exalted among the heathen,

 I will be exalted in the earth.

Be still. What picture comes to mind when you read those two words? Be still.

Being still is something I have great difficulty in doing. I don’t have any trouble being busy, crowding my days with activities, running back and forth from task to task. But being still? Not so easy.

It’s so difficult to be still in such a restless world. It’s such a challenge to stop and be still in a world that calls us to busyness, that pulls us along in its current of always needing to ‘do’ something or ‘be’ someone.

But what does God call us to do in this verse in Psalms? To be still. And this being still has to do with surrender, letting go, forsaking and striving no more.

”The word used here - from  raphah - means properly to cast down; to let fall; to let hang down; then, to be relaxed, slackened, especially the hands: It is also employed in the sense of not making an effort; not putting forth exertion; and then would express the idea of leaving matters with God, or of being without anxiety about the issue.” Barnes.

So being still carries the idea of being quiet and easy, not fretful and impatient or restless, but resigned to the will of God. It doesn’t mean to be inactive and unconcerned, but quiet. A quietening of the heart.

To be still is a choice. And often it’s a hard choice. We are all carried along by the tides of busyness and we all have important things to do, but there is a time to just sit, and be still. And more importantly, to be still and know that God is God. To take time to tune out of the world and into God. To listen for that still small voice.

It’s so hard to hear God speak when we are letting the world scream in our ears. God speaks in the stillness. The devil screams in our busyness.

We find this phrase ‘be still’ in another place in the Bible that is worth mentioning.

Mark 4:39

 And he arose, and rebuked the wind,

 and said unto the sea, Peace, be still.

 And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

The difference here though is that in the Greek, these words, be still, mean to be silent or be dumb. So, in essence, hush or shut up. The Lord told the waves and wind to shut up! And I think sometimes, we need to just hush and be silent and listen.

We fill our lives with so much ‘doing’ and not a lot of ‘listening’. We dart from one task to the next, always on the move, never resting, never stopping to catch our breath. But God requires us to come into His presence and just be still. To quieten our minds and our bodies and listen to what He has for us.

I think of Mary and Martha and the ‘encumbrance’ of Martha in contrast to the ‘quietness’ of Mary as she sat at Jesus feet. Mary chose that one thing that was needful. And that was to sit and be still and listen to the Lord.

Luke 10:42

 But one thing is needful:

 and Mary hath chosen that good part,

which shall not be taken away from her.

Sometimes we are intimidated by silence. It forces us to address issues we might be running from. It makes us stop and think. It causes us to focus on other things. But silence can be a great healer. It can be a time of communion with the Lord and gleaning guidance and wisdom from Him, without the distraction of a noise-filled world.

It has been said that we have upwards of 50 000 thoughts a day! And a lot of those thoughts are not healthy. They are anxious or fearful thoughts. We have to tell our minds to be still. To hush. To shut up! But quieting the mind takes practice. We have to renew our minds and be transformed.

Romans 12:2

 And be not conformed to this world:

 but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind,

 that ye may prove what is that good,

and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Every day is a struggle. A battle of sorts. To keep our minds focused on God while we go about our crazy and hectic day. A constant renewing of our minds. A conscious effort of quieting our hearts and letting God speak to us. Of listening in the stillness.

This being still has really been brought home to me lately as I am busier now than I have ever been before. I wear many hats in my God-given role and at times it all becomes overwhelming. But when I force myself to stop and take the time to be still and surrender my will to God’s perfect will and sit down in body and spirit and really focus in on what He has for me, I find that the ‘noise’ quiets for a time and I am able to learn more about God’s purposes for my life and I find precious promises in His word that help me as I go about my day.

Also, don’t forget that the end of that verse in Psalms says ‘and know’. Not just be still. But also know. We are to be still and know that He is God.

“And "know"; own and acknowledge that he is God, a sovereign Being that does whatsoever he pleases; that he is unchangeable in his nature, purposes, promises, and covenant; that he is omnipotent, able to help them and deliver them at the last extremity; that he is omniscient, knows their persons, cases, and troubles, and how and where to hide them till the storm is over; that he is the all wise God, and does all things after the counsel of his own will, and makes all things work together for good to them; and that he is faithful to his word and promise, and will not suffer them to be overpressed and bore down with troubles.” Gill

So, we are not just to be still, but we are to know who God is. Where it is our help comes from. Where our refuge is.

Psalm 46:1

 God is our refuge and strength,

 a very present help in trouble.

Sometimes I think that our being still is more like a little child that is sitting down on the outside, but standing up on the inside. They’ve been told to sit, but there is rebellion in their heart as they only outwardly obey.

We sit still, we ‘look’ like we are quietly spending time in prayer and study, but on the inside, we are anything but still. Our mind is distracted, we are not focused on the words in front of us or the prayer on our lips. Being still is not just an outward appearance. It is a matter of the heart. It is an attitude of stillness. If we are not going to quiet our hearts and minds, we might as well keep running. God sees us through and through and He knows whether we are truly being still.

A few years back, I came up with my own acronym for the word “turmoil” to be a reminder to me of what it looked like and to wake me up to the importance of calm instead of turmoil.

T rusting in my own abilities

U nderestimating God's Almighty Power

R efusing to surrender to God's control

M urmuring instead of praising

O verdramatizing the circumstances

I nterrupting God's plans with my own

L osing the plot instead of controlling my emotions

What we need is calm and peace. Contrast this acronym for calm with mine.

C onsider the bigger picture

A cknowledge God is in control

L ook for the lesson

M ake it a point to praise

Yes, we all want calm instead of turmoil. Peace instead of storms. But we must take the time to be still and listen. Only then can God truly give us the peace we need.

There are many verses in the Bible on waiting on the Lord and that is to be my next topic of conversation. God has been working on me very patiently of late on this subject of waiting and I haven’t learnt all the lessons yet, but with the Lord’s help, I want to share with you some promises that He has given me in relation to waiting and being still and knowing that He is God.

And so, until next time, God bless and take time to be still.

Psalm 27:14

 Wait on the LORD: be of good courage,

 and he shall strengthen thine heart:

wait, I say, on the LORD.