Have you ever noticed how much noise happens around us daily, from negative news and different information outlets, our worries, and a lot of uncertainty that has hit our nation. It’s hard to stay focused on one thing when our attention span is getting shorter, and we have become impatient. The quick generation that wants things done like a two-minute dinner, next day delivery on prime or food delivered to your doorstep in minutes. We get so caught up that it's hard to stay focused on the promises of God. In this Devotional, we will be reminded of what it means to seek God in the noise and be still, and to focus on His promises for our lives. We will learn to trust God and trust His timing. 

The Bible verse we will focus on is Psalm 46:10 “Be still and Know that I am God.” This verse is about being intentional to have an encounter with God from our quiet time. Ever wonder why it is called quiet time? Because we are meant to stay still and quiet so that God can have an opportunity to speak to us and show up in our situation. 

This 5-day devotional will stir our hearts back to the understanding and importance of being still.

Psalm 46:10

Be Still and know that I am God

Stillness is the absence of movement and sound. From the time we wake up to the time we go to bed, we are constantly moving and filling our space with noise; from the TV to the coffee maker, to the music, the news, traffic, meetings, phone conversations, you name it. Being quiet and staying still requires discipline. We often worship, pray, and move quickly towards our daily agenda. 

When we have a conversation with God, after we have acknowledged who He is and what He has done in our lives and render our prayer requests, we must give God time to respond back. Our posture should be that of stillness waiting to receive directions, paying attention with our spiritual ears and being in a posture free of movement and distractions. Our focus verse Psalm 46:10 reminds us that it is in that place of stillness that we discover who God is, we build a better relationship with Him, and discover what His heart's desires for us are. It is in that place of stillness that we understand the plans He has for us and get to hear clear directions for our lives. Yet we often miss it in the chaos of the day.

Prayer: Father thank You for being patient with me when I rush in and out of Your presence. Forgive me for not waiting for You to speak back to me when I call unto You. Teach me the discipline of staying still, free from movement and sound to truly hear You speak back and respond to me.

Additional Readings

Psalm 37:7- Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes

Job 6:24- “Teach me, and I will be quiet; show me where I have been wrong.

Psalm 46:10 

Be Still and know that I am God

Being still and knowing God is in whatever situation is an indication of peace. We say this verse so often but how many times do we really have peace amid things going wrong? Our first human response is flight, fight, or freeze. We panic, we let the negative thoughts sink in and continue to ruminate on the negative until our minds exaggerate it to the worst possible outcome. We need to build up what I call our spiritual muscle to respond better to situations by being still and trusting the word, such as in Job 22:29 which says “when men are cast down, then thou shalt say, there is lifting up and he shall save the humble person.”

We learnt about stillness in day one because of the presence of peace in the stillness. It is in the stillness and quiet time we begin to build our spiritual muscle by focusing on the Word for the day. The Word that we meditate on, the Word that becomes our armor for the day's battle. There is always something that shifts our mood, our focus, our attention and takes away our peace. Being still in the presence of God helps us to find our weapon for the day. So, when we are faced with challenges that are inevitable, we have to find a moment in the noise to be still and trust God.

Building your spiritual muscle comes from practice. We are always caught up in the noise and business of life that it feels weird to sit in the silence. One minute can feel like forever. In the silence we focus on God, His Word, await his instructions and think on things that are pure like it says in Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things.”

Prayer: Father help me to learn how to build my spiritual muscle so I can be still during challenges. Forgive me for times I have let the negative news control me instead of trusting in Your Word to bring me peace. I pray I continue to find peace in the stillness.

Additional Readings

Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep perfectly peaceful the one whose mind remains focused on you, because he remains in you.

Mark 4:39-41 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

There will always be storms in our lives. We all face it individually and collectively at different points and intervals in our lives. Mark 4:39-41 reminds us of how fear creeps in the moment we are faced with danger just like the disciples were afraid. I’m sure many of us have stories of how fear has crept in when we think we are about to lose our job, or fear the results from our doctor’s appointment, or even the results from an exam. This scripture reminds me about the importance of building our faith. 

The Bible talks about how we build our Faith from hearing the Word of God. I have pictured it like a meter or gas tank we must fill up daily. Romans 10:17 says “So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.” The more we hear it the more we build up that spiritual muscle like we talked about in day two. This time we are building the spiritual muscle of faith. The only way we get toned is from lifting the right size of weights over a period of time. In this case the Word is the weight we lift in times when fear kicks in. When Jesus said “Quiet! be still!” He silenced the storm they faced. 

I don’t know what storm you face on a daily basis but that was a Word spoken to the situation when they were on the boat. We have to learn to quiet our storms; both the ones we face in secret and the ones we face in the open. It takes the faith we get from the Word of God to remain still.

Prayer: Father help me to build my spiritual muscle of faith by staying still in Your presence until I hear a word. Guide me to continue to use the word and command my fears to be still. Let me continue to have a hunger for Your word as it guides me through life. 

Additional readings

Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.

Isaiah 12:2 See, God has come to save me. I will trust in him and not be afraid. The Lord God is my strength and my song; he has given me victory.”

There are times in our lives that things happen that force us to stop and focus on God. We were collectively forced to stop and stay still in our homes during the pandemic but there are individual situations we all face in our lives that require our focus and attention on what God is trying to say, teach, or show us. 

1 Samuel 12:16 Now then, stand still and see this great thing the LORD is about to do before your eyes! Sometimes the great things in our lives are subtle; the warning sign God gives us in times of danger can be drowned out by our own worries, fears, and anxiety, causing us to miss it. 

We talked about the distractions and how hard it is to stay focused and be still in day one. However, focus and stillness as we talked about requires discipline and this discipline comes with sacrifice. Sacrifice of our time and comfort. 

The distractions come from getting caught up in what is hip, popular, or has become our norm. Our generation gets into the mindset of FOMO (fear of missing out) but the Bible does tell us in Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Focus means we will miss out on certain things, because we are too focused on the instructions and leading of God to help transform our minds from fear, worries and anxiety. This will help us to know what God’s plan for our lives is, and to know the timing for certain things in our lives. 

Prayer: Lord help us not to get caught up with the way of the world that we lose focus on the great things You have for us or on the warning signs. Give us the discipline to stay still and focused on You, Your word and timing for our lives.

Additional readings

Exodus 14:13 But Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the LORD rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again.”

Luke 10:38-42 Now as they were traveling along, Jesus went into a village. A woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat down at the Lord’s feet and kept listening to what he was saying. But Martha was worrying about all the things she had to do, so she came to him and asked, “Lord, you do care that my sister has left me to do the work all by myself, don’t you? Then tell her to help me.” The Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha! You worry and fuss about a lot of things. But there’s only one thing you need. Mary has chosen what is better, and it is not to be taken away from her.”

When we get to the last quarter of the year, it is always a reminder that we only have four months ‘til the following year. We assess our goals and start to panic when we realize all our goals have not been met or the Word you got at the beginning of the year has not yet come to pass. The ninth hour for this devotional will be used in a similar context as an eleventh hour breakthrough.

The ninth hour is where we persevere in the place of prayer reminding God of the promises He has spoken concerning our lives. Romans 12:12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.

The ninth hour signifies God coming through at the time we need it the most, it also signifies a time of prayer. It is also a time of letting go and letting God. 

It was in the ninth hour Peter called out to Jesus when he got distracted and started sinking. Matthew 14:30-32. It was also in the ninth hour the thief on the cross cried out “Lord remember me when you come into your kingdom” (Luke 23:42)

In our ninth hour, when we think the year is ending, or our human timeline for whatever accomplishment is coming to an end, this is the time to stay steadfast in prayer. 

As we have entered the ninth month, what is that ninth hour miracle you are believing in God for before the end of the year? This is the time to seek God in prayer, we may have been distracted at some point during the year and missed His direction, but He is always able to redirect. 

Prayer: Lord help us to call out to You in our ninth hour. Help us not to give up in the place of prayer. Guide our hearts to remain focused on You and teach us to be still and listen to Your direction. As we continue to build our trust and lean more on Your Word than the negativity that comes from the world. 

Additional Readings

Ezra 10:9-11 So all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered at Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth of the month; and all the people sat in the open square of the house of God, trembling because of this matter and because of heavy rain. Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have transgressed and have taken pagan wives, adding to the guilt of Israel. Now therefore, make confession to the Lord God of your fathers, and do His will; separate yourselves from the peoples of the land, and from the pagan wives.”

Jeremiah 36:9-10 Now it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, in the ninth month, that they proclaimed a fast before the Lord to all the people in Jerusalem, and to all the people who came from the cities of Judah to Jerusalem. Then Baruch read from the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the Lord, in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the upper court at the entry of the New Gate of the Lord’s house, in the [a]hearing of all the people.