Be Still

"He calms the storm, so that its waves are still."  --Psalm 107:29, NKJV


“Be still.”

When my heart initially discerned the Spirit’s voice whisper this instruction, I took it in its most literal sense. I stilled my body as much as possible, attempting not to move a single muscle. As He repeated the command with seemingly greater earnestness I tried to become even stiller, believing I was moving in a way imperceptible to me but very bothersome to the Holy Spirit.

Hearing His admonition yet another time, my frustration kindled and I thought: "Come on, how STILL can a person GET?"  I imagine this amused my Heavenly Father, just as it amuses me now. With time and through context, I have learned to recognize "Be still" as His way of saying, "Calm down".
The stillness He sought was a quieting of my soul—a cessation of the type mind storm that churns up dangerous emotions inside those children who often struggle within themselves over issues that are best placed in an omnipotent and caring Father's more capable hand.


I am just such a child: A fretter. An inner laborer.


With the simple directive, “Be still.” Jesus saw fit to grab from my control an issue that was causing intense ongoing emotional struggle. He desired to give me immediate inner peace by stopping the turbulent waves of worry (unproductive reasoning), anxiety, fear and doubt that were continually washing through my mind. I stubbornly held His authoritative power at bay by choosing to labor within myself. By daybreak I was exhausted but unable to sleep, having tossed and turned throughout the night. I had nothing to show for my hard inner labor. No answers. No direction. No peace. Discouraged, I haphazardly flipped through the pages of my Bible seeking any measure of comfort. The Holy Spirit's response was to redirect my focus back onto Him by connecting three scriptures that revealed my earlier folly: 


First…

Mark 8:35-40, NKJV
“On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.” Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”


And next…

Psalm 12, NKJV
“I will lift up my eyes to the hills—From whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade at your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth, and even forevermore.”


Then finally…

Psalm 127:1-2, NKJV
“Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep.”


Blessed revelation!


It had never before occurred to me how soundly Jesus was able to sleep in the midst of a storm so tumultuous that His disciples feared for their lives. The disciples found the Lord’s peaceful slumber so odd that they questioned whether He cared about their imminent danger. But Jesus equated their panicked reaction to the storm with distrust in His promise to ensure a safe arrival to the other shore. Once He stated matter-of-factly, “Let us go to the other side,” His word should not have been construed as a mere suggestion that could be voided by even the severest storm. Jesus wanted His disciples never to doubt that they would get to the other shore without perishing. Perhaps they would have grabbed their own pillows and napped until the storm blew over!

So, what truths did I learn after my own night of being tempest tossed? I was reminded that the Lord Who commanded raging winds to “be still" is the same Lord Who is sovereign over the stormy circumstances which trouble my life. With the power of His Spirit and authority of His Word, He is even able to hold my inner storms in abeyance.


To completely still them. 


And if His command to "be still" is of no effect? Then I must understand that my Lord was able, but rather than releasing my storm fully to His control, I held on.


Seeking ownership.


Psalm 31:12-16, NKJV
“But as for me, I trust in You, O LORD; I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in Your hand…”


As I become preoccupied with calming the winds of adversity that beat against my life I can easily lose sight of the truth that my times are in God’s hands. Too often, I’ve labored within myself to exhaustion using the unproductive mental “tools” of obsessive reasoning and worrying about possibilities and outcomes that are completely out of my control. The fruit of such labor are destructive waves of anxiety, fear and doubt—an inner storm that rivals in intensity whatever I’m outwardly facing!

As the Holy Spirit guided me through His Word, I was reminded that if God Himself is not the One watching over my life and sovereignly controlling my outcomes then no amount of worry, anxiety, fear, doubt or fretful reasoning will benefit me. No strategy energized by flesh will bring a good end. Worse, the activity of “laboring in vain” hinders me from receiving my Heavenly Father’s strengthening grace or from hearing His still small voice speaking needed wisdom and guidance.


Psalm 139:7-12, NKJV
“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,” even the night shall be light about me; indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, but the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You.”


Jesus assures me through His Word that He remains a watchful Shepherd Who never neglectfully sleeps nor slumbers. It stands to reason that if I genuinely trust that He is faithfully “on guard” in the midst of my personal storms —even when it appears He is not actively working—then I can REST. In His loving-kindness, Jesus desires that I experience the inner peace and restful sleep promised to everyone under His care—those He bids to fully depend upon Him to bring them safely through their every storm. 

How encouraging it is to know that regardless of outward circumstances I can continually enjoy both an inner peace that transcends human understanding and peace-filled physical rest.


Glory!


These are not special blessings reserved exclusively for “super-saints” or attainable only by those whose walks are perfect. They are promised gifts available to all whom God calls His beloved. 


Those who simply trust Him.


I pray that this revelation immediately permeates my soul each time I am tempted to take authority over my life back from Jesus in a vain effort to calm a personal storm.