Series: Songs of Worship—Getting Real With God
Sermon: Be Still
Speaker and Writer: Elia King

Refresh: Open with prayer. Ask God for understanding through the Holy Spirit.

Read: Psalm 46:1-11 (NLT). As you read the New Living Translation, note 1–3 insights or questions.

Reflect: My family used to love to fish. The area where I grew up was full of small lakes that were either regularly stocked or just happened to be rich with fish, so it wasn’t unusual for us to hook up the boat and just take a drive looking for lakes that met our minimum requirements for “fishability.” Our criteria were fairly straightforward: Could we get the boat into and out of the water? In most cases, this was easy enough to work out from shore. Especially because we had a trailer, all we had to do was to determine whether or not the driver of the truck (usually me) could back the trailer deep enough into the lake that the boat would ease off the trailer without falling backward and damaging the propeller. Step two was to estimate whether or not we could back the trailer in deep enough when it was time to leave that the driver of the boat (usually my dad) could throttle the engine and launch the boat back up onto the trailer while the driver of our truck pulled forward without leaving the boat to roll back into the murky depths of Lake Whatever. Most of the time, this all went off without a hitch. But on one memorable afternoon trip, my dad suggested a deviation from the plan: he would drive the truck and I could pilot the boat.

Everything went more or less according to plan on arrival. As we fished, we noticed clouds gathering in the evening sky a little faster than usual. As we began to feel raindrops, we also noticed some flickering in the distant clouds, and decided it was time to head for home. But by the time we neared the shore, we were in the middle of a torrential downpour.

“Do you want to drive the truck?” My dad asked, offering me an out. But I was determined to do my part. What I hadn’t counted on was a crosswind that was so strong that I circled no less than four times trying to line the boat up with the trailer. Soaked and disappointed, I finally surrendered. My dad landed the boat on the first pass. It was only a small change to our usual routine, but it was enough to make all the difference.

When I read this Psalm, I can’t help but think of a time when Jesus used the same phrase we hear at the end of this song. Be Still.

In the story of Jesus calming the sea recorded in the fourth chapter of Mark’s gospel, the disciples in the boat should have known the chance of a storm was alway a risk. But for some reason, they were so bewildered by their circumstances that they were afraid for their lives. I have to wonder what made the difference? What was the change that made them so afraid?

In the closing stanza of this Psalm, the writer seems to know something that we know to be true, but often forget in the face of our fears—that the same Jesus who calms the storms outside is also more than able to calm the storms inside us, if we are only willing to let Him.

Recalibrate: In what areas of your life might Jesus be saying, be still, right now?

Respond: Pray that you will find peace in a turbulent situation.

Research: Listen to the TED Radio Hour’s podcast called “Quiet.” What stories or ideas resonate with your own faith journey?