Dear Friend,
This month I want to share an absolute ahh-ha moment! Have you ever looked at a piece of art, listened to a song, or read something you've read a thousand times before—and suddenly you hear, see, and feel something new? Something exciting? That ahh-ha moment.
Well, I want to take up five minutes of your precious time to share a gem…a pearl of wisdom, an ahh-ha moment. It is literally bursting out of me. I am so excited, because this is a game changer for me, and I know it will be for you.
If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, I bet you have heard the first part of Psalm 46:10 many times: "Be still and know that I am God."
Believer or not… hold on…this is going to rock your world.
To give you a backdrop—there is a major crisis happening in my life right now where the Lord is asking me to trust Him, sight unseen. (I won't go into all the details, but I am to surrender all I own into God's hands and let Him take it all if He so desires.) In other words, whichever way He chooses the future will go, I must walk in peace and trust through the fire of uncertainty and possible catastrophic material loss.
Let me tell you…when you are the age my husband and I are, and too old to rebuild, this is a tough walk of faith.
A sweet friend came over yesterday to pray with me about this situation, and before she came, God spoke with her to share Psalm 46 with me. So, I closed my eyes and listened—from that deep inner part of my soul—to the soft cadence of her voice.
The chapter begins with a reminder that God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble (and wow, trouble is a-knocking.) Then it clearly states, as if it is a given: "Therefore we will NOT fear." Yeah, I have heard this command before, in many different passages. Not so easy to live.
What came next was sobering.
Though the earth be removed…though the mountains shake and fall into the sea, though the waters roar, though the nations rage, though the earth itself is melting…guess what? God is in the midst and shall help at the break of dawn (not too early and never late).
Again, it reminds the reader: 7) "The Lord of host is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge."
Chills literally climbed up my spine (in a good way). Think of being in the most catastrophic of situations and then…what does God suggest?
Verse 10) "Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth."
This hit me like a tsunami, rolling in from the depths of the sea. What? What? What? These are the verses—the context—in which this beloved, often-quoted verse is nestled? I have read the Bible many times over. Why was I only seeing this for the first time?
Chaos may be swirling like a vortex around me, and it is then… I am to be still and know that He is God?
I pointed this out to my friend, and we were both in complete awe.
Peace poured into me, over me, and flowed like a river through me. No matter what happens, three truths spoke indelibly into my soul.
- God is my refuge
- I shall not fear
- And in the most chaotic of circumstances, the command is to… "Be still and know…that I am God."
How counterculture this is. How outrageous a suggestion. Yet how powerful a truth.
When things are at its worse, step into the arms of a loving God. Take refuge. Choose to trust and not fear. And the craziest of all instructions…be still. Do nothing. Stop striving. Allow God to be God and watch the miracle unfold.
I pray this encourages your soul in the midst of whatever you are going through. Please read Psalm 46 in its entirety and be encouraged as I have been. I will continue writing a blog each month and let you know how this situation is progressing, and how I am living out this wisdom (or perhaps struggling).
But for today, I choose to allow this truth to relax, refresh, and renew my hope. I will be in His arms whether I own my home or lose it all. I pray this scripture passage will give you the same gift of assurance it has given me.
Also, here is an amazing song by Hannah Kerr called Fear Not!
All scripture is from NKJV