“Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it”
I Corinthians 12:27

“Be Still”
Saturday, March 21, 2020, by Director of Music, Vicki Dykstra Williams

Psalm 46:10-11
“Be still, and know that I am God!  I will be honored by every nation, I will be exalted throughout the earth”

“Be Still”.
Seems easy enough, right?
We can all sit still for a few minutes.
“Know that I am God”.
Well, that’s easy, too; haven’t I known that all my life?

It seems I’ve read this verse a hundred times or more but reading it was always as far as it went. Taking it to heart is a little more difficult. After all, who has time to be still?  I mean, come on, do you realize how much I have going on and how many demands there are on my time?  Doesn’t the night-time prayer that I say after I crawl in bed count?  After all, that takes a good ten minutes because I have to keep restarting my prayer each time I catch myself dozing off.  Does God count that as “still” time?
The original Hebrew word for “be still” is “Raphah”.   It means to “sink down, drop, let go, cease, or withdraw”. In addition to that, it’s not a suggestion; it’s a command.  God doesn’t say, “Try being still, it might work for you.”  No, He tells us to be still.  It’s easy to equate being still with being quiet, but I believe being still is much more.  I believe it’s placing yourself in a state of full surrender to God.

There are several other verses in the Bible that talk about being still before God.  According to Google, there are 25.  If you’re homeschooling and want an assignment for your kids, have them check that out to see if Google is right, and if they’d like to write one out and share it with all of us on Facebook, that would be great!

Some verses instruct us to be still and see, or watch, or wait.  But Psalm 46:10 says to “be still and know”.  Know that God is Lord of all.  Acknowledge His sovereignty.  Stand in awe of His creation.  Celebrate His providence. Explore His character. Be humbled by His deep and intense love for us.
How do we become better at doing these things?  The same way you would get to know a new friend better.  You would spend time with them.  You would talk.  You would listen.  You would learn about them and what makes them tick.  So, I would like to encourage you to spend time today being still: take time to “sink down, drop, let go, cease, or withdraw”.  Find a quiet spot. Unplug from the moment, open God’s word, and ask Him to speak to your heart.
Then listen.
Listen.
And listen some more.

Write down what you learn and what you hear God prompting you to do.
In today’s world, this isn’t something that comes naturally.  It’s a discipline we need to learn.  And quite honestly, sometimes finding a quiet place alone can be like finding a needle in a haystack (or toilet paper at Meijer right now!). The current crisis in our world may have completely disrupted your daily life and schedule. But it may also be providing the perfect opportunity to be still.  Or maybe it’s providing the perfect opportunity to teach the art of “being still” to your children.

One thing is for sure….the more you spend time being still with God, the more you will want to spend time being still with God.
I asked my grandson, Jayden, to read a devotion from Sarah Young’s “Jesus Calling: 365 Devotions for Kids.  It’s called “Take a Break with Me”.
You can watch it on our post on the Heritage Christian Reformed Church Facebook page.