Reflections: Day 2 - Be Still and Know that I am God

This 7-day devotional series will reveal how to spend this time in quarantine reflecting and examining your life through God‘s eyes, so that you can redeem your thoughts towards your past, be present with Him and boldly enter the post-COVID world in the center of His perfect will in this season of our lives and the next.

DEVOTIONAL TWO:

The first time I read Psalms 46:10, I was in high school, sitting on the floor in my room, causally reading through the Bible.

Psalms 46:10 - “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

Something about the simplicity and practicality of the scripture stopped me and without a moment to doubt myself, I closed my eyes and sat perfectly still. I had no clue what to do or expect but I sat quietly, my mind completely blank, to see if I could know God.

Nothing.

I waited some more.

Still nothing.

I waited in the quiet darkness of having my eyes closed. So then, I tried to actually think of something and the thought of how big God must be dropped in my spirit.

I saw myself and imagined how my life is in the palm of His hand. Then I imagined all of planet Earth in the palm of His hand. In my mind, I was looking down on Earth, how small it was and how big God must be to hold it. And then I imagined the planets like Saturn and Jupiter and stars like the sun. Earth so small in comparison

….yet God is bigger.

And I began to fly, through space, passing through the stars until I could see the whole milky way galaxy. How big and beautiful

….yet God is still bigger.

I kept soaring through space, remembering all the constellations and galaxies I saw in science class. And though I tried, I couldn’t fathom how far and wide and infinite the universe must be yet still God is bigger. And in the moment of reaching the end of my imagination, incapable of grasping how big the known universe must be, let alone knowing the God who created all of it and His love for me, I could feel the presence of the Lord surround me like never before and honestly have not experienced since. I felt weightless, as if I began to levitate off the ground.

I was in awe.

My eyes remained closed but the feeling of floating became so tangible that I had to open my eyes to see if I was still on the ground. I opened my eyes. I was where I was sitting the whole time, on the floor of my bedroom.

Slowly, I could feel the weight of my body come back until I felt normal again and my focus fully restored to the reality of the moment. God is real. I know God is good and faithful. And He is patiently waiting for us to put our phones down and make Him a priority in our daily lives to show us who He is and what He can do.

During this season of reflection, while we are sheltered in place and many of life’s activities are on hold, let's not replace one distraction with another but be still, get in God’s word and get to know Him. His word is alive. The Bible is not just a book of theory and philosophy. It is alive. It became flesh in the form of Jesus and continues to live and manifest in us when we believe it, say it and live it.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.

The Christian life is an experience that should saturate every area of our life. Let’s spend time together in reflecting on who He is.

Be still.

Be quiet.

And He will reveal himself to you.

Scriptures to Read:

Psalms 46:10

“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

1 Kings 19:11-13

Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.

So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Romans 1:20

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and [g]Godhead, so that they are without excuse,

Ephesian 3:17-19

...that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

John 1:14

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Application

Take an hour in your day and have a date with God. Divide the hour into the following parts:

• First 15 minutes - Thank Him and worship Him out loud. Play some praise music. Get in His presence.

• Second 15 minutes – Spend time reading some scripture

• Last 30 minutes – Turn off your phone, music, TV, all distractions and just listen with expectation. Ask God to speak about whatever He wants to talk about and to reveal Himself. Write down any revelations you get.

Prayer

God, quiet my restless spirit. Calm my mind. Surround me in a peace that surpasses all understanding. Give me discipline to not be distracted. I break the spirit of addiction to my phone and all digital distractions. I welcome your presence. Make me sensitive your presence. Reveal all that you want to reveal Holy Spirit. Have your way in the moment. I pray I am never satisfied with your presence. My hunger and thirst for you will never cease. Thank you for revealing yourself to me Lord. Amen.