Working In the Business of Being Still
God is trying to tell me something
I’ve run into this phrase twice now
“Be still.”
It keeps popping up, and it’s from the verse:
“He says, ‘Be still and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.’” (Psalm 46:10, NIV)
It was in a song on the radio the other night, and before that, it was in a little discussion on the radio by Charlotte Gambill. In it, she spoke of being still to hear God and receive His blessings and help.
When I start hearing the same phrase from the Bible over and over, I’ve learned to listen. Usually, it means God is trying to tell me something.
Be still
Well … crud.
If you’ve read enough of my pieces, you know this is not in my nature.
Be still?
Nothing gets solved if I’m still!
Except that’s not true.
That’s little me thinking that somehow the world won’t run if I’m not investing in it every second of my day.
I have news for little me. The world ran before I was born, and it will run after I die. God is the one making sure the universe doesn’t fly apart, so I’m pretty sure He can handle it if I’m still for a while.
But …
Why?
Why is God telling me to be still?
I think it’s because I’m always trying to work out all the eventualities, particularly of problems I encounter, and come up with a game plan to address each. I dislike conflict, and try to head it off at the pass as much as possible.
Trust me, it’s exhausting.
That verse says, “Be still, and know that I am God …”
Why?
Because God is God, not me.
No matter how hard I try, I have no way of coming up with every eventuality. I have no way of properly addressing every problem I encounter.
But God does.
Be still, and leave it to Me.
I’ve come a long way with this sort of thing, I really have. But strategically planning every second of every encounter that could go wrong speaks a lot towards the lack of trust I seem to be putting in God, sometimes.
I’m not saying it’s wrong to have a game plan for life. But I can’t trust in my own ability to see everything through or sort things out. I’m human. It’s just not going to work.
Be still.
Stop obsessively coming up with plans and start working in the business of being still.
Give your plans and your interactions to God. Let Him take care of it.
It seems like a lot calmer way to live. I’m going to give it a go.
I have a feeling that, actually, a lot more will get solved this way.
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