What comes to mind when I say, “be still in God?” We began our study by asking, “What does being still mean?” Who else thought it was about meditation and yoga? Today we will pull together all we’ve learned over the past 13 days in our 40-day fast and devotions on how to be still in God every day.
Why review how to be still?
Often we are tempted to speed through devotionals (not you of course) while I am a fan of meditating. So let’s review a bit today and let the truths of God’s word seep in more deeply.
What Does It Mean To Be Still?
“This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” Joshua 1:8 NASB
What does being still mean?
To understand how to be still in God we must see what the Bible says about being still. So today we will take a look at the Hebrew root of ‘to be still. It is also my hope that you will see why I changed the wording from “How to be still in God now” to “Being still in God every day”.
Learning how to be still and know that he is God is an everyday practice
We began our devotions on being still with 12 Scriptures that use or imply Be Still. They are outlined below.
1. How To Be Still: A Time to Keep Calm (charash) or Be Silent
“The Lord will fight for you while you [only need to] keep silent and remain calm (be still).” (Exodus 14:14 AMP)
Be still, keep calm, be silent.
Learning how to be still in this text means to stop complaining about your impossible situation and begin to trust God.
If you will just be still, the Lord will fight for you.
How can I practice being still?
Read more about this in the devotional: God Will Fight For You: Be Still My Anxious Mind!
To Be Still is to stop being anxious about the battles in life. Anxiety doesn't win the battle, God wins the Battle. Share on X2. Be Still Means Hold Your Peace, Keep Quiet, Be Inactive (chashah)
“Now the king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know that Ramoth in Gilead is ours, yet we are still (being still) doing nothing to take it from the hand of the king of Aram?”” (1 Kings 22:3 AMP)
Be still, be inactive, keep quiet, hold your peace.
Do you ever wonder what God says about being still?
When God says no, accept His no. Don’t try to force open the door God closed for you. Stop trying to get advice from your yes men when God says, “No.”
To be still when God says, “No,” be thankful for all the blessings in your life. Fix your eyes on God and ask Him to help you see His will as a way to keep at peace while you wait on Him.
Review this day’s devotional: When God Says No It’s Hard to Be Still
3. Be Still Means Be Silent, Struck Dumb (unable to speak or astonished) (damam)
“Tremble [with anger or fear], and do not sin; Meditate in your heart upon your bed and be still [reflect on your sin and repent of your rebellion]. Selah.” (Psalm 4:4 AMP)
To be still is to be unable to worry about the needs and chaos of life because of the fear of the Lord.
How can you be still that way?
- Spend more time remembering how God has blessed you.
- When you are tempted to worry over the everyday struggles of life, remember how He showed up to rescue you in the past.
- When you are facing real needs and overwhelming chaos, take those thoughts captive.
- Spend time every day changing the pattern of your thoughts to match Philippians 4:8 (see how to test your thoughts here).
Peace of mind in the midst of the needs and chaos of everyday life is really possible when we are being still in God.
Read more about it in this devotional: How to Find Peace in the Midst of Chaos: Be Still in the Needs of Everyday Life
4. Be Still Means Practice Refreshing Your Soul
“The Lord is my Shepherd [to feed, to guide and to shield me], I shall not want. He lets me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still and quiet waters (be still and drink to refresh your soul).”(Psalm 23:1-2 AMP)
Be still is not in this passage, but the implication is in a few phrases I’ll outline below.
- I shall not want (chacer) means I lack nothing.
- Be still, rest in God’s ability to provide everything you need, whether you understand how He does it or not.
- He restores my soul (shuwb) means to return or go back.
- Be still, trusting that even when you wander from God He will bring you back, restore your soul, and give you another chance.
I praise the Lord for being a God of second chances… and 3rd… and 4th… and 20th chances. My soul is prone to wander but God will restore my soul.
To go deeper with Psalm 23 check out this from BlueLetterBible.org and Jennifer Rothschilds study (Psalm 23 The Shepherd With Me)
Read the devotional here: Are You Trusting God in Difficult Times When You Don’t Understand?
Did you find this mid-series? Go back here and read the intro and keep up with the series.
5. To Be Still Means To Stop Striving (Fighting), Wait, Rest (damam) in God’s Plan
“Be still before the Lord; wait patiently for Him and entrust yourself to Him; Do not fret (whine, agonize) because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.” (Psalm 37:7 AMP)
How can I be still and wait on God?
Be still, wait on God, by not trying to get ahead of God’s plan for your life. Rest in God’s will. Stop looking at where other people are in life and getting all worked up with envy or fear that you are missing out on or where you feel behind.
Ouch, I needed that!
Read the devotional: How to Overcome Envy: Learn to Be Still
6. How To Be Still Is (raphah) To Relax, Let Go, Be Quiet.
“Be still and know (recognize, understand) that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations! I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10 AMP)
Be still here literally means to relax, letting go of your need to control everything. I often need this reminder to quiet the fear and anxiety of the unknown.
The same God who created the universe is in control and will take care of you, so be still and exalt Him every day and in every season of life.
Read the devotional: Remember God Is in Control To Be Still
7. To Be Still Means To Rest, Be Idle, Be Quiet, Be At Peace (shaqat)
“Do not keep silent, O God; Do not hold Your peace or be still, O God.” (Psalm 83:1 AMP)
Do not be still, God, don’t rest when we are in danger. Don’t be at peace while we are afraid. Please don’t be idle when we need You to fight for us.
God is never idle but sometimes it feels like He is silent when we most need Him. Doesn’t it?!?!?
So when God seems silent it is a call for us to seek His face. Pray. Pray harder. Fast. Go to God with open hands saying I need You, Lord, please speak.
God longs for us to seek Him and promises that we will find Him when we search for Him with our whole hearts (Jeremiah 29:13).
Read the devotional: When God Is Silent You Must Pray to Be Still
8. “Be Still Praising” Means (halal) To Shine, To Make A Fool Of
“Blessed and greatly favored are those who dwell in Your house and Your presence; They will (be still) singing Your praises all the day long. Selah.” (Psalm 84:4 AMP)
To be still here, means to make a fool of yourself by praising God. It expresses a longing to be in God’s house to be in His presence and shine His praise in song.
Read the devotional here: The Blessing of Praising God During Difficult Times: Stillness
9. How To Be Still: Calm, Quiet, Silent (dĕmamah)
“He hushed the storm to a gentle whisper, So that the waves of the sea were still (be still).” (Psalm 107:29 AMP)
Be still, be calm. Being still with God every day is about being calm in the storms of life because you trust God.
God cares about the things we care about. He will come to our rescue no matter the size of the storm. Pray and tell Him your real problems, He wants you to!
In the passage, God is quieting a real storm. Because Jesus knew that He was able to be calm in the face of a literal storm in His life. Spoiler alert: we’ll see that in a few verses.
Read the devotional: Can I Trust God in the Storm of Life to Be Still?
10. Being Still Meaning To Be Made Silent, To Mourn, To Wait, To Cease Striving (damam)
“Be silent (be still), you inhabitants of the coastland, You merchants of Sidon; Your messengers crossed the sea” (Isaiah 23:2 AMP)
Be still; mourn when change is hard. Remember to be silent from your complaining and listen when God warns you.
Stop striving toward self-reliance and depend on God, wait on God instead of depending on the things of Earth that will change and fail. God will never fail.
Read the devotional: Be Still and Trust God When Change Is Hard
11. Be Still (damam) To Be Silent, To Make Quiet, Rest in Stillness.
“O you sword of the Lord, How long will it be before you are quiet? Put yourself into your sheath; Rest and be still.” (Jeremiah 47:6 AMP)
Be still, rest, be silent. God is just and when we witness the justice of God it can cause us to grow dumb (unable to speak in awe or fear of God).
In the context of this prophecy, we can also take this to say, “Rest from evil and heed the warnings of God.”
God gives us warning after warning, do-over after do-over. Don’t take that for granted. God is just and there will come a day He judges the world. Be ready.
Read the deovtional: Can You Be Still When God Is Just?
12. Be Still (phimoō) Is To Put To Silence, Or Be Kept In Check.
“And He got up and [sternly] rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still (muzzled)!” And the wind died down [as if it had grown weary] and there was [at once] a great calm [a perfect peacefulness].” (Mark 4:39 AMP)
Be still, be silent. ‘Peace be still,’ was a lifestyle for Jesus. This is by far my favorite be still Bible verse because it gives an actual example of this way of life. YES!
Jesus could be still because He knew God. Jesus trusted God. He trusted the will of God.
What does it mean to know God? Well, we get to know God through challenges like this be still and know devotional series.
Who else has felt challenged?
Read the devotional to learn more: Can You Trust the Will of God Like Jesus?
Learning How to Be Still in God Every Day Requires Going Deeper
- Get to know God.
- Learn to trust God.
- Walk in the will of God.
- Be calm in the real storms of life and pray.
- Listen when God speaks and warns you.
- Pray more than you complain about your struggles and let God fight for you.
- Accept God’s answer whether it is yes, no, or wait.
- Fear God and remember how He has worked in your life.
- Rest in God’s ability to provide for you.
- Trust God to restore you when you wander from Him.
- Stop fighting God’s plan and trying to get ahead of Him.
- Relax and let God control things.
- Seek God with all your heart when He seems silent.
- Praise God and rest in His presence.
A Prayer to Be Still in God Every Day
Precious Lord,
I need you every day. There is no way I can be still in my own strength. Fill me afresh with Your Holy Spirit today. Give me my daily bread, just enough trust, faith, and love to chase away the fear that keeps me from being still.
I will give you all the praise and the glory, Jesus.
Amen
Check Out More About Being Still In The Lord:
- 3 Ways to Being Still: from Living Out Priorities
- What does it mean to be still and know that I am God?: from Got Questions
- Be still and know that I am God: from Desiring God
God Repeatedly Says “Fear Not, for I Am…”
Now that we’ve defined be still we will see how to make stillness an everyday kind of lifestyle. Stillness of mind is possible but to start with we will look at the enemy of being still – fear.
In our next 13 days, we will see how we can overcome fear by holding God to the promises in His name. I can’t wait to see you then.
in HIM,
Tiffany of Hope Joy in Christ inspires Christian Women to grow in faith, live out Biblical Marriage Principles and raise Godly Children. Join the Wives Only Facebook Group here or keep up with her through Pinterest.
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