Be Still … and Remember
by Frank Lim, Deacon
“You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance” (Psalm 32:7)
I am writing this in the wee hours of the morning, my favorite time of the day. It is quiet, and I enter into my hiding place to be with God, my refuge. With Him, I am safe. There is no fear, no condemnation, only peace in His presence I can listen to His silent voice. Soon I will be a part of a crazy world of busyness and distractions that will compete for my attention and time with Jesus, and I will find it challenging to listen to His voice.
I confess to Him that this morning, I find it difficult to worship and pray, and His gentle voice reassures me and tells me to just “be still and know that I am God”... and remember. I tell myself to look up that scripture. A few minutes later, I listen to a podcast, going through the Bible with Fr. Mike Schmitz, and one of the passages being read on this day is Psalms 46. Amazing? Indeed! We all need to carve out time from our busy daily schedules and activities to rest and be still.
During this 40-day fast, we can do this by refraining from food and activities, and focusing our attention on Jesus, and simply being with Him. Jesus fasted and He rested. In Exodus 5, we see Moses and Aaron approaching Pharaoh and asking him to grant the Israelites temporary freedom to go and worship their God in the desert. Pharaoh denied their request and instead piled on even more oppression upon his slaves. In a way, we are enslaved to our work, daily activities, and smartphones, and we need to break free, if only for a few moments each day, to be with Jesus.
In my hiding place, I can be reconciled with God by my confession and repentance. And I can freely worship. In worship, I “enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise.”We praise God for who He is, and we thank Him for what He has done and what He is doing. I love Leon Williams’ rendition of Andrae Crouch’s My Tribute:
“How can I give thanks for the things You have done for me?
Things so undeserved, yet You gave to prove Your love for me.”
As we approach Thanksgiving, I encourage you to be still and know that He is God .... and remember. We remember and we can give thanks, for big things and little, seemingly insignificant things. Sometimes we tend to forget and take the simple things of life for granted. In remembering, we are also assured of His faithfulness.
Spending quiet time with Jesus has made me acutely aware of the little blessings He brings my way, blessings that I can be thankful for. Recently, I was walking with my little granddaughter through the woods in New England, praising God for being the Creator of the crisp air and rich fall colors around me. It was quiet except for the birds and rustling of the leaves. In the midst of this, I stumbled over loose rocks and she said “I want to help my Papa,” and she took my hand in hers. My heart was overwhelmed with this act of kindness and care from one so young. I became emotional and whispered, “Thank You, Lord.”
Prayer: Lord, thank You for inviting us into Your holy presence. You delight in being with us in quiet moments. Help us to listen to Your gentle voice and continue to reveal Yourself to us and remind us of the good things You have done for us. In this Thanksgiving season , we come before You as a thankful people. We thank You for our families, friends, church, and for Your provision in each of our lives. In Your blessed Name we pray, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen!
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