Cease

Good Morning,

“Be still, and know that I am God! Ps. 46:10

Not long ago I was driving my truck, listening to the radio when suddenly the radio stopped. When I got to a spot where I could pull over, I made sure it wasn’t on mute. I turned it on and off several times.  I pushed all the knobs I could think of to push. Nothing.  The next day I started the engine anticipating music and still nothing.  Then I noticed the volume meter was at zero. I turned the knob to the right and presto, the music returned.  Turns out the radio was broadcasting the entire time, but the volume had somehow shut off.

I couldn’t help but see a corollary for our spiritual lives. There are moments when we wonder why God is not speaking and wonder where He went. Often in those times, we are busy pushing the knobs of life. We are trying to control our circumstances, we are worried about the state of affairs in our life and in the world. Perhaps we are fighting fear and anxiety. The noise in our lives has drowned out the voice of God, who incidentally has been speaking all along.

The Hebrew word for “be still” in Ps. 46 means “relax, sink, let go, cease”. To cease is a powerful idea. Through ceasing God wants to draw our attention back to Him. To remind us that He is ever present and ever in control. Writer Eric Célérier offers further insight about what God is inviting us into through ceasing:

• Cease moving (to let Him act).
• Cease thinking (thoughts of anxiety, for example).
• Cease speaking (in order to hear God’s voice).
• Cease worrying (because God is a high tower).
• Cease planning and controlling everything (because God is the King who plans and commands).

A seemingly endless number of things clamor for our attention these days. Some are good and healthy, others not so much. But to hear God’s voice requires us to take time to cease. Take time to relax, to tune out the noise and be fully present in the presence of God. What He has to say is always the exact thing we need to hear.

At the beginning of this week, how about taking some time to cease? To be reminded that God is with you, for you, and is speaking to you.  It will change the course of your day, our week and maybe even your life.

Live on purpose,
Ron Klopfenstein