Be
Still
We used to have a dog named Honey. Among other things, she never learned to walk
properly on the leash.
She hated that
leash, pulling against it so violently that it seemed she could be heard hacking
and retching for miles around. Frankly,
it was so embarrassing that we simply gave up and left her at home while we
walked her sister. Of course, that
brought yelps and howls of displeasure as well.
There was no winning with this girl. Lucky for her, she was cute.
I am not so unlike Honey. I’ve never enjoyed leashes – or fences for
that matter. When my parents bought a
house with a nice fenced-in backyard, I promptly climbed out of the fence and
crossed the street to explore the neighboring subdivision. Mother and Daddy learned early to give me
very clear definitions of my “territory”.
For whatever reason, I was able to live within those boundaries as long
as they didn’t include a fence.
Unfortunately, this resistance wasn’t just a
childhood malady. I have often struggled
against God’s leashes in my life. When I
cannot see what God is up to, I pull and strain against the leashes he has
placed on me. When I am afraid, I yelp
and howl and cower as if He is not God enough to handle whatever plagues
me. Sometimes I don’t know what keeps
God from knocking me upside my head.
There is certainly nothing “cute” about my behavior.
Psalm
46:10 says, “Cease striving [Let go; relax; be still] and KNOW that I am God; I
will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
Cease striving.
What a difficult concept! I used
to think of this command only in terms of the physical, but now I know that it
is akin to soul stillness. Like a
freshwater spring, it comes from deep within and brings peace, life and
healing. It is there that I am refreshed.
Life these days is practically full of frenetic
activity; church, school, sports, family, ministry. To cease striving, to relax, to let go, is
not natural, but must be learned and then practiced. The act of being still wars against
everything in my nature. Enough of the
retching and straining as I attempt to lead.
It is time to stop pulling against His leash and lean into His
bosom. It is there I will find my rest.
Not only am I commanded to be still, but I am to
know (acknowledge) that HE is God. My
focus is to be on Him and to listen for whatever it is He has to say to
me. He will not yell or badger. He will wait until I am quiet and then He
will whisper. Oh how I want to hear His
whispers to my soul; to feel His breath on my ear; to be intimately acquainted
with His voice. Oh to enjoy such rest.
Make is so, Lord Jesus, make it so.
No comments:
Post a Comment