In Psalm 46:10, God says “Be still, and know that I am God.” Be still. This is something I have felt the Holy Spirit say to me repeatedly in recent weeks.

Life can be so fast-paced. Each day seems to have a never-ending to-do list. I feel that many people take pride in their hustle; in being busy and having full schedules (and in supposedly thriving amidst tackling all of these things). But are they truly thriving? Can anyone when they are always going and going and going?

Do you feel overwhelmed by the all of the responsibilities and tasks on your plate currently? Is there time for God in your busy schedule? I struggle with this sometimes. As my calendar fills up with plans and I wish there more hours in each day, I’m feeling as though I haven’t spent enough quiet time with God. On many days, there hasn’t been time allotted for this in my schedule if I’m being honest. That needs to change. Time with God shouldn’t merely be another thing on my to-do list to check off. It’s more than a task to get done. It’s a precious time to cherish. A time of rest. This is actually something God wants us to do. He actually commands us to rest.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28 NIV)

Now that is a commandment I can’t imagine anyone complaining about! 😉 By the way, rest should not be confused with laziness. This is not an excuse to waste hours watching television or scrolling aimlessly on social media. I believe rest involves taking a pause from all your tasks and activities to just be still. This can look different from person to person. Spend some time reading the Bible and/or a devotional. Turn on worship music. Talk to God. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths. REST in our loving God’s presence. He longs to spend time with you, His beloved child! Why wouldn’t we want to spend time with the One who cares for us most? Whenever friends reach out to us about getting together and seeing how we’re doing, aren’t we eager to meet up with them? We ought to be that excited—even more actually—about “catching up” with our Maker. Since He knows everything, nothing we say will surprise Him. However, He still desires for us to come before Him and be vulnerable with Him—the One we can trust most.

In Psalm 46:10 when God says to “be still,” He finishes this sentence with “and know that I am God.” When I read this, I break it down into two parts.
1) “and know”— to believe and trust completely
2) “that I am God”— that He is all-knowing, all-powerful, good, just, compassionate, kind, wise, great, loving, awesome. The list could just keep going!

The point is, we need to pause and REMEMBER who our God is. In every situation, know, believe, and trust that He is exactly who He says He is.
I pray you can take some time today to be still in our loving Creator’s presence and rest in who He is.

”The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul.” (Psalm 23:1-3a NIV)