Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Be still and know that He is God



Sorry for some old person music here...but may it help at least one of you :) Steven Curtis Chapman is one of my favorite Christian artists, along with Michael W. Smith. This is one of those songs that I occasionally turn to as a reminder to slow down. Sometimes, I fall into the worldly trap of thinking that being busy is good...and that being "still" is not. Even in the church, it's easy to equate our spiritual growth with spiritual activity...when sometimes, the opposite is needed...that is, the very important need to be still in the presence of God. There's more then a few instances in the Bible where Jesus would leave his disciples and go off somewhere to rest and recuperate from his ministries (Luke 6:12). As I look at the lives of some of you, I fear sometimes that some of you are too busy doing this and that at church. It's good to experiment with this and that at church...so that you can explore and discover your gifts and talents. But balance is the key...sometimes, in the process of busily exploring, you overinvolve yourself to the point where you are doing things without quality...barely just getting by. That's when I think it's important to take a rest...and ask God during the rest whether He wants you to let go of some of the things you're involved in. Some people think (and give others a guilt trip about it) that it's wrong to say no. Again, it's about balance. I went through a period of this during my college years (when I first became a Christian) where I got my hands involved in everything. At that stage, I was energetic and had a lot of stamina. But even with all that physical energy, there's only so much emotional and spiritual energy in each person. Right now, I'm going through a similar thing...so I await on God to reveal His plans.

In Matthew 11: 28-30, it reads "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.". This is Jesus talking...He tells us to take His yoke which is easy and light. I believe "yoke" consist of those things that Jesus is concerned/feel responsible for. How many of us can say that our "yoke" is easy and light?

So my prayer for you through this song is that you will find that life is not so heavy and burdensome that you feel like you can't climb out of whatever you're involved in. Share with God those things that has put a heavy burden on your heart...and He will give rest to your soul. God bless you all, my fellow song bloggers.

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