By Bud Fickley, Director of Student Ministry
I don’t know about you, but taking time to be still is probably one of the things that I struggle with the most. Even as I’m writing this blog, I’m turning it in late because I have too much going on.
Sure, I could blame it on the fact that I have two rambunctious boys at home. I could tell you that the construction project at the church has just been eating up too much of my time. I could even say I just forgot.
The truth, though? The truth is I don’t leave enough margin in my life so that when things go off the rails I still have some buffer. The truth is, and my wife will be the first to tell you, I generally keep a schedule that doesn’t let me stop from the time I get up in the morning ‘til the time I go to bed at night.
This week, Pastor Tom preached on gluttony. He said that gluttony is not specifically about food but anything we can over-consume. And the real sin in gluttony is not the over-consumption itself but the reason behind the over-consumption. What are we trying to avoid or turn off when we turn to that oversized bowl of ice cream at 9:30 at night?
God says to us in Psalm 46:10a “Be still, and know that I am God.”
“Be still, and know that I am God.”
Did you catch the punctuation in there?
It’s not “Be still and know that I am God.” It’s not one singular phrase. There’s a comma in the middle.
Be still (pause) and know that I am God.
Read that again and take the time to pause, really pause. Count to three in that comma.
Be still and know that I am God.
There’s power in that pause. Even in that statement, we are forced to be still for a moment. And somewhere in that moment of stillness, we find God.
We find a God who created everything, then took time to rest. We find a God who can sleep through a storm, then calm the waves when his disciples begin to panic. We find a God, whose spirit comes to use like a thundering wind, but who also speaks in a still small voice. We find a God who says, “Be still.”
What would you find if you took a few moments to be still?
I over-consume busyness (in addition to a good bowl of ice cream or some late-night nachos). I don’t know why. I don’t feel like I’m hiding something from myself. But, if I’m being honest, I probably won’t know until I take time to slow down and be still.
So, if you’re feeling called out by the blog this week, you’re not alone…I am too. In fact, I wrote this for me; you just get to be a part of it. I pray God works in the moments we take to be still…
And know that God is God.
Music to “be still” with: Be Still and Know That I Am God, by Steven C. Warner, sung by the University of Notre Dame Folk Choir.
Dutilh Church 