How to Be Still And Know That He Is God

This post is a devotional that relates to these DIY tutorials: Easy DIY Scroll Art | How to Paint Over Chalk Painted Furniture (Console Reveal)

Soon after hanging the sign, I walked through the entryway into our dining room with dozens of anxious thoughts swirling through my head, all concerning my daughter’s dyslexia and the horrible school year we’ve had.  Right then, my daughter noticed the sign for the first time and read aloud, “Be Still and Know that I am God.” 

I intended to sit in the dining room with the sun streaming through the windows to work on this post’s outline.  But her sweet voice reminded me that I needed most to bask in the message of the words on the sign itself.

This amazing verse is towards the bottom of Psalm 46, and you have to read the whole chapter in order to grasp WHY we have the ability to be still:

¹ God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.  ² Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, ³ though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.

⁴ There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.  ⁵ God is within her, she will not fall;  God will help her at break of day.  ⁶ Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;  he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

⁷ The Lord Almighty is with us;  the God of Jacob is our fortress.

⁸ Come and see what the Lord has done,  the desolations he has brought on the earth.

⁹ He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth.  He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;  he burns the shields with fire.  ¹⁰ He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;  I will be exalted among the nations,  I will be exalted in the earth.”

¹¹ The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Psalm 46, NIV

The words “be still” actually better translate from the Hebrew to “cease striving.”  Isn’t that perfect?  When I find myself lost in a whirlwind of anxious thoughts, my default mode is to strive!  The word strive means to “struggle vigorously.”  So, the meaning of be still is “cease struggling vigorously.”

But in reality, that’s precisely the opposite of what I do. Like a woman in a straight jacket, I often try to escape my trials by my own strength, will, and determination. All the while, the only person who holds the key stands right there in front of me, waiting for me to call out to Him.

That’s not to say that God will always remove the trial. But He PROMISES to be our refuge and strength, holding us tight in His arms until the storm passes and it’s safe to go outside again.

In Psalm 46, we see that even if the earth gives way or the mountains are moved into the heart of the sea, “God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns.”

What are you upset about?  What is consuming your thoughts?  What are you striving against?

Make a long list to get it out of your mind and onto paper.  Now, take a moment to pray about each item on the list.  As you pray, trust God with each bullet point.  Give it to Him, knowing He is your fortress and a very present help in trouble.