Be Still

“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

February 17, 2023

Chinese surveillance balloons at high altitudes making their way across the continental USA. Other unidentified objects in the atmosphere. Russian jets flirting with our air space over Alaska. A major Russian offensive threatening Ukraine. Those born after 1990 don’t have the memories of Cold War tensions between the West and the Iron Curtain. The psalmist sensed the storm clouds gathering as the army of the Assyrian King Sennacherib was making his move on Jerusalem. Was there an adequate defense ready for the crisis? Martin Luther’s famous hymn, “A Mighty Fortress,” is based on this psalm. Saber rattling armies are told to be quiet. God, the exalted Ruler of the earth, has power over the whole warring world. He is more than capable of removing evil instigators, troublemakers, rebels, and expressions of hostility in whatever form. A restless and turbulent world is rebuked; “Lay down your arms and surrender.” God has many ways of defending His name and reputation. It is our responsibility to be calm and sure, having a security system installed in our soul. John Wesley said it well, “the best of all is, God is with us.”
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“Did we in our own strength confide, Our striving would be losing, Were not the right man on our side, The man of God’s own choosing. Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He. . . And He must win the battle.”