“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
– Psalm 46:10
Hi James and Ellen,
Have you ever experienced being in a driving rainstorm and/or a blinding snowstorm and/or a choking dust storm? Have you ever experienced being in a rumbling earthquake and/or a raging hurricane and/or in a parching famine? Have you ever experienced being in a burning fire and/or a rioting mob and/or a warring conflict? There is always a fearful something happening someplace on planet Earth. An intimating mass of killer cold air is right now invading much of the United States. A demoralizing economic downturn is continuing to empty global pockets. A raiding military offense is retaliating against indiscriminate bombings. Are you fearful of your personal welfare? Are you fearful of what tomorrow will be like? Are you fearful of change? Do you do well with going with the flow? Do you do well with handling the unexpected? Do you do well with enduring disparagements? Have you ever experienced sensing a loving God being your refuge, your strength and your constant help in crises? Have you ever experienced witnessing an angry God causing anarchy to ravage countries, using chaos to devastate kingdoms and speaking fury to melt nations? Have you ever experienced watching God bringing cessation to wars, burning the weaponry of militaries and breaking the defenses of nations? There is always an awesome something happening or taking place someplace on planet Earth. A large area of northern United States is right now being covered with a beautiful white snow blanket. Guys and gals in places all over planet Earth are returning to simple, manageable lifestyles. Guys and gals who were very recently subjugated by oppressive regimes now have freedom. Are you glad that you are living in a place which has a military that defends, a police force that protects and a freedom to speak? Are you glad that you are living in a place which offers ample educational opportunities, immediate health services and abundant religious venues? Are you glad that ongoing political changes will agitate the kind of public angst that will generate right choices, develop technological breakthroughs and permit easier communication links that will allow global communities to openly receive the presentation of the Good News message? Trying to live a status quo life will quickly leave a guy, gal or kid feeling lost in today’s rapidly morphing society. Trying to live a stable life will quickly have a guy, gal or kid finding himself or herself feeling out of touch with the crises that are on the world’s stage. Trying to live a simple life will quickly see a guy, gal or kid empathizing with marginalized guys, gals and kids.
Instead of your grandpaa going on and on about why being fearful is something that does not pleases God, your grandpaa will let the guy who scribed Psalm 46 tell you what God really expects you do. Verse 10 says, “‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”’ Some Bible scholars think that a psalm song writer scribed this psalm song to be liturgically sung by the Levite tribal clan choir as young gals shook tambourines during a procession of guys, gals and kids as the procession was going to God’s temple that was located in the city of Jerusalem. This psalm song – which is composed of three symmetrical stanzas of three verses each, has God’s specially chosen guys and gals – the Israelite people group guys and gals, joyfully and triumphantly confessing their fearless trust in God no matter what God was doing in or with His creation, what God was doing with them as His specially chosen guys and gals and what God was doing or not doing with their enemies. A psalm song writer was inspired to write this psalm song to celebrate the security that he and that God’s specially chosen guys and gals felt living in the city of Jerusalem – because of God’s presence being there, and to celebrate the hope that he and God’s specially chosen guys and gals have of God’s victorious reign over them.
Your grandpaa believes that this psalm song expresses the kind of mindset that a Christ-follower guy, gal and kid must always have. While your grandmaa and grandpaa were with their study group last evening, one of the guys mentioned that he believes that God wants us to have things. The study group that your grandmaa and grandpaa are going to each week is now going through a six week study on being financially balanced. Your grandpaa has no trouble believing that God wants him to have things, your grandpaa just struggles with how that belief assumption is understood. Your grandpaa has an issue with guys and gals blatantly teaching that God rewards guys, gals and kids for performance acts such as doing ministry, giving money, obeying laws, having quiet times, etc. Your grandpaa struggles with guys and gals who are constantly recounting what they have done versus recounting with thanks to God what God has done through them. Because of this psalm song and after your grandpaa was asked to facilitate a session on ‘you are dearly loved’ during a pending training session at Adventures in Missions headquarters, your grandpaa has thought a lot about what God’s mercy is like. Your grandpaa also just happened to listen online to the message ‘A Foreign Love’ that Steve Holt preached a week ago this past Sunday. Your grandmaa and grandpaa attended Steve Holt’s church – which is called Mountain Springs, when they were living in Colorado Springs. Your grandpaa now believes that the one thing that God expects from each Christ-follower guy, gal and kid – in response to His unmerited love of embedding the gift of hope of an eternal life into the life of each new Christ-follower guy, gals and kid, is a spontaneous incessant joyfulness, praise and adulation from each Christ-follower guy, gal and kid.
Psalm 46 (973)