Psalm 46:10-11 – “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.
THEME OF THE DAY. STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES. Today’s theme is an idiom we each know. This is a call to stop being so busy we fail to take time and appreciate life. And all of us may utter, “Amen.” There are times we feel life is racing by us at breakneck speed barely leaving time to breathe. We sense there is no pause bottom to push and savor all the many blessings in our lives. Though this idiom is an excellent “exposition” of today’s scripture in the life of the Christian. Not only is it an excellent exposition, but it carries within it an implied warning in the form of its opposite. But first the instruction, then the warning.
As the Psalmist unfolds God’s truth of His power and protection in this Psalm, he closes it with the application in the form of two commands – “Be still” and “Know God.” What follows these commands is the result of obeying them; an awareness of God’s majestic sovereign authority over everything and everyone – “I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” The most important and comforting truth of our God is His absolute sovereignty. For the obedient child of God, here is where peace, rest of soul, and joy are found; knowing our God is not surprised about anything that comes into our lives. He is not reactive and scrambling around trying to figure things out. Not at all. Every hair on our heads is numbered and every event in our lives is under His complete rule and government. Isn’t that thrilling to know when trials and suffering comes? God is still on the throne and He occupies a throne of sovereign mercy and sovereign grace (Hebrews 4:16). However, we will only be able to rest our minds and hearts on this liberating and empowering truth if we obey the commands – “Be still and know I am God.” And that leads to the implied warning by the Psalmist.
The warning implied is best illustrated by the opposite of today’s verse. Here is a writing of its opposite – “Be busy, don’t stop and smell the spiritual roses of God’s truth and we will not know God which will lead to a fret-filled, worry-riddled, and stressed out life over circumstances and situations that appear out of control.” That is why busyness is so disastrous to the spiritual life. A life filled with busyness is a spiritual danger that will do two things in a Christian’s life. First it will produce spiritual barrenness. Fill life with the world and we will not be able to be filled with the Word. When it comes to the world and its pleasures, demands, and enticements, it always screams louder for our time and energy than the Spirit of God. And the flesh? It never gives into the Word but always pulls us to the world.
Another thing a life of busyness will do is create spiritual neglect in the soul. How will we see this in our lives? We will be inconsistent to church. We will be a prayer-less people alone and with other Christians. We will avoid being in the Word with other Christians. Why? Conviction. Spiritually-negligent Christians don’t like to be around spiritually full Christians. The Spirit of God uses such people to bring conviction and chastisement on His children who through busyness have given themselves over more to the world than His Word.
So, how are we doing in our walks with the Lord? Are we choosing to “Be still and know that He is God?” Remember, it is not our inability to say “no” to the world to know the Lord. It is our desire. We will always do what is most important to us.
PRAYER: “Father, forgive me when I am so busy in life, I fail to seek to know You who gave me my life.”
QUOTE: “Busyness does two things; it masks our spiritual barrenness and it ensures our spiritual barrenness”