Be Still

Be still; what does that mean? Is it the same for everyone? Can you be still in a crowded room? What about a busy airport or in the middle of a concert? What does it look like? How do you even know that you’re in a place of stillness? Is it an outward condition or an inner one?

I suppose that every person you ask will define stillness differently. Some may see it as the absence of sound, while others would find sitting in total silence to be insane. Yet it was God who said, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). What does God mean by being still? Do you know?

Truthfully, I’m not asking the questions for you, but for myself. I want to learn to do this because, like many others, I live a hurried and busy life. Taking time to breathe is a luxury. Personally, I don’t want to be driven. I want to live in a rhythm of life as God intended, not the one society imposed upon me. Success, getting ahead, winning, and other such adjectives dot our lives at the expense of our peace and joy. Where did this idea of life come from?

Because I want to practice being still, I’ve set an alarm in my calendar to remind myself to take some time to be still. This will mean silencing the world around me and practicing being aware of my breathing and heart rate. Along with this, there will be a simple exercise of releasing the tension in my body. For myself, I have realized that I carry tension in my muscles. When I practice this, I feel my body relax into the chair, and my breathing becomes more relaxed and rhythmic.

In the end, I do want to hear God. Not my own thoughts or the noise of the world around me. I want to hear His whisper, that gentle voice just as Elijah did when he was in the cave (I King 19:11-13). It will start as I learn to be still. Think about it.