Be still

To the perpetually exhausted
paralysed by perfectionism,
to solace seekers,
to ears haunted
by the whispers of midnight worry,
to unsatisfied addicts;
the joyless,
the dull of mind,
to broken hearts hiding
behind masks and walls,
to the ambitious who fight for control,
to the discouraged overachievers
and the hopelessly insecure:

The sun will rise and set today without your help.
God’s providence will prevail in spite of human plans.
No matter your circumstances,
He has secured for you an ending without ashes.

So why are you;
a creature of dust,
holding the world on your feeble shoulders?
Why do you burden yourself with sovereignty,
when the throne of grace awaits your coming?
Have you lost your capacity for wonder?
Have you forgotten the works of His hands?

Open your blind eyes,
soften your dulled heart,
be still because
He hears you in the silence,
is with you in solitude,
and has walked before you
into realms unknown.

Psalm 46:

God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Come and see what the Lord has done,
the desolations he has brought on the earth.
He makes wars cease
to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”

What characteristics of God empowers you to ‘Be still’ today?