Be Still and Know That I Am God...

Do the waves in this picture represent the trials of your day? Do you feel like there are circumstances in your life that are about to crash down and wash you away for ever? Today has been a day - for several of us - that has seemed like we are the man standing there about to be consumed...A day when many of us have been asking "God, what are you doing????"

Today, in my circle of friends, there has been a mother of five who was wheelchair bound, a woman scheduled for surgery for uterine cancer who might have to postpone it due to pregnancy, a friend worried that I was stuck in a ditch somewhere, a single mom who was laid off from one of her jobs, a mom of 3 who has already been feeling like a single mom while her husband has been out of town for 2 weeks - who had a computer fry while one of her precious children was using it - resulting in the electricity for the whole house needing to be turned off for the night, and a single mom who needs to hear from the Lord about a job, a relationship, a move, and any other number of things...

God, what are you doing? What do you want me to see? What do you want me to do?

I have been asking these questions a lot in the last few weeks...and I always get the same answer. "Be still and know that I AM GOD." I hear it in the still small voice that speaks to my heart, I hear it in the music that randomly comes on my Ipod, and today I "heard" it as I opened a box packed 2-1/2 years ago in Atlanta and pulled out and opened a devotional I bought in 1995 and NEVER once used. There it was, right at the top of the page..."January 1 Be still and know that I am God" Psalm 46:10

But Lord, I whine, don't I need to DO something???

As I was sitting in my comfy living room chair, whining to the Lord, the Holy Spirit began ministering to me. He prompted me to look up at the wall behind me...my favorite wall in the house...my navy wall. On my navy wall hangs MY picture. The picture that so captivated me that I stood in a shop in St. Augustine staring at it, mouth gaping open, while my friends continued down the street to other shops...the picture that I went to visit at the Christian bookstore for 2-1/2 months until God provided the funds for me to bring it home.

The picture you see above. A man is standing in the doorway and all around the lighthouse the waves are swirling around, about to crash down on the lighthouse and - it would seem - wash the man away forever. What is the man doing? Is he running for cover? No. Is he paralyzed by fear by what he sees around him? No. Is he holding on for dear life, bracing himself for the crashing waves that are seconds away from causing his demise? No.

He is standing, non-challantly, with a hand in his pants pocket, looking up to the sky.

He doesn't seem to notice what is going on around him. When I first saw this picture I wanted to yell "RUN! RUN FOR YOUR LIFE! YOU'RE ABOUT TO BE OVERCOME!"

But before those words could form on my lips the Lord pointed out something that I instantly wanted to be the theme of my life...the thing that kept me standing there, mesmerized, for close to an hour that day in St. Augustine...

His eyes were toward heaven...he was so fixed on the Lord that it did not matter what was going on around him...he was seemingly unaware of what was going on around him.
That was it...the cry of my heart..."Lord, may I be so focused on You that nothing going on around me would be able to distract me. Lord, that my eyes would be fixed on You..."
So, what do I do on days like today when the boxes aren't packed, the laundry isn't done, no firm plans have been made to move us to our new home this weekend, I have questions about what I believe, my friends are hurting - in so many ways, and I don't have a job.
I fix my eyes on YOU LORD! YOU are my strong tower. YOU are my fortress. YOU are the rock in whom I trust. YOU will not be shaken! YOU will not let me perish! Those who trust in YOU will never be put to shame!So Lord, I wait patiently for You. I wait for You to lead, I wait for You to guide. I trust Your Holy Spirit to reveal Your will to me.
Do I do nothing? No. I keep packing boxes, I start the washing machine, I keep my eyes fixed on You, I read Your Word, I sing praises to Your Name, I cry out for You to save me once again...I accept the dinner invitation offered by one friend while calling another friend to offer them help for tomorrow...I trust YOU!

Psalm 46 God Is Our Fortress
To the choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. [1] A Song.
1 God is our refuge and strength,a very present [2] help in trouble.2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,3 though its waters roar and foam,though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,the holy habitation of the Most High.5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved;God will help her when morning dawns.6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter;he utters his voice, the earth melts.7 The Lord of hosts is with us;the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

8 Come, behold the works of the Lord,how he has brought desolations on the earth.9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;he burns the chariots with fire.10 “Be still, and know that I am God.I will be exalted among the nations,I will be exalted in the earth!”11 The Lord of hosts is with us;the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

Lord, I know the few people who I encountered today are not the only people who faced trials today. Lord, thank You that these are people You have placed around me to remind me of who You are. Thank You for Your faithfulness in each of our lives. May each precious soul I have mentioned know Your faithfulness in a new way. Lord, I pray that You meet each one of us where we are and comfort us. Lord, thank You for Your Word, that never changes. Thank You that it is living and active. Thank You that You have sent the Comforter to us. I praise You Lord for You are Holy! You are worthy of our praise! Nothing we are facing is too big for You! Thank You that You are our very present help in times of trouble! Lord, I wait with great anticipation to see how You will meet every need each of us has. Lord, may Your name be glorified in all the earth! Amen!