Be Still
How comfortable are you with stillness?
Verse of the Day
“Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes.”
Today’s Devotional
There are times when I would compare my ability to be spiritually still with that of a tired, hungry toddler. This week has been an example of that. I have had trouble being still with God this week. And I have felt the absence of it. I have still had my daily time of study, prayer, and journaling…but it has felt rushed and “off” somehow. Maybe it’s because I’m writing about patience, or maybe it’s just my humanness.
I was on an airplane recently and I was listening to a sermon that I had downloaded. The pastor was talking about experiencing the presence of God, and he referenced the story of the prodigal son. “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him.” (Luke 15:20) The pastor then said that what many of us are missing (in experiencing God’s presence) is the hug. Jesus was describing His Father in that story, who runs to His kids and embraces them as they come to Him. As I was listening to that sermon, something about the thought of God running to me and hugging me touched a very vulnerable place in my heart. I want the hug.
As I’ve been pondering that, I have come to realize that my choosing to be still with God is a version of the prodigal son deciding to head home. God isn’t going to chase me down in my busy-ness to hug me. He wants me to follow the wisdom of today’s verse: be still in His presence, wait patiently for Him, don’t let my humanness be a distraction to that.
As I was researching what it means to actually be still in the presence of the Lord, I came across this beautiful “Stillness Prayer” from One Thing Alone Ministries.
Oh Lord, You know my heart better than I know it myself. You know my struggles and You hold each hope and fear in Your caring hands. Teach me, LORD, to be still and to know that You are God.
You are in Your holy temple; let all the earth, including my mind and heart, be silent before You, resting in Your sovereignty. Like Elijah, teach me to wait for Your still, small voice and quiet the earthquakes and blazing fires in my life.
Replace my restless doing with inner calm, and help me, like Mary, to sit at Your feet in quiet adoration even if there are a million things clamoring for my attention. Just as You spoke over the tumultuous sea and storms, so speak over my heart Your peace.
“Peace. Be still,” You said to them, and immediately they quieted. Teach my heart to cease striving and to know– to have an intimate and deep, personal, first-hand experience–that You are God.
Help me cultivate a quiet heart, like a baby content in its mother’s arms, no longer coming to You with a “gimme” spirit but instead calmly nestling against Your heart. Help me find quietness and happiness in intimate communion with You. You will be exalted over all the earth, and You’ve got the details of my day covered. I can rest in You.
AMEN.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
How comfortable are you with stillness?
How do you practice being still in the presence of the Lord?
What would it look like if you were able to wait patiently for the Lord to act?
How does envy (or any other humanness) get in the way of your relationship with God?
How can you ask God to help you to be still in His presence today?