Be Still and Know

Like so many ants or honey bees, we spend our lives rushing back and forth, always trying to get just one more thing done. Yet, beyond it, there always lies another task to begin or finish. It never ends, nor shall it. We live under so much pressure to balance work and home and kids, community and social obligations, not to mention exercise, spiritual growth or even hobbies. There is just too much to do. Even in our Christian lives the cadence seems to be the same. We’ve got a checklist of things to accomplish and obligations to fulfill. Sometimes we feel as if God were some great cosmic camp director with a megaphone, constantly urging us on towards the next activity or program. However, when life begins to turn into a tread mill we can miss out on some of the most important parts of it. This is especially true in area of faith. Somehow, we seem to have gotten the message that we’ve have to accomplish a certain number of things for God. If we attend enough meetings, volunteer for enough committees, do enough stuff, that will make God happy ... and justify us. Yet, while God expects great things from us, He doesn’t necessarily demand a life of busy work which may be to the exclusion of everything else. Even people in full time ministry can get caught up in the Christian rat race to the point that they can lose track of their purpose, or even God. I believe it was the great theologian, Joanne Worley, who once said, “Even if you win the rat race, you’re still a rat.” Our God is a God who speaks in a still, small voice and to hear that voice we often must slow down and quiet our lives. He asks much of us, but He is also jealous of our time and commitment. He wants us to be with Him even more than He needs us to work for Him. I am reminded of Psalm 46, where in the midst of a discourse on war and God’s power, the writer inserts the phrase, “Be still, and know that I am God.” In the midst of life, we are also encouraged to “be still.” God may cure us from great illnesses. He may lead us through great trials and triumphs and battles. But He meets us in the quiet places of our lives. It is there that He listens to our prayers and whispers the answers back to our hearts. Only when we turn down the volume and slow down the pace may His voice be heard. There is so much to do, but don’t fall into the trap of merely doing for the sake thereof. Take time to be still and know that He is God.

Be Still and Know
God does not command us to hurry
To rush or to over-commit
He makes it clear there are times for action
Yet, there are times to merely sit
It is easy to fire up and charge
Into battle when battle is near
But God also honors the quiet man
Who will kneel before Him in fear
For the world belongs to the gallant ones
Who are strong and able to command
But heaven is saved for the humble men
Who know God’s voice and His gentle hand
“Be still and know that I am God”
These are the Lord’s own words
Yet, even for those who are serving Him
Far too often they go unheard
God only speaks to the quiet man
Not the one who is on the go
The one who will find Him is he who will pause
To simply be still and know
By Frank Carpenter ©