The exhortation of Psalm 46:10 is well known: “Be still and know that I am God.” We might imagine that this is simply calling for quiet contemplation. But there is more to it than this. The psalmist is calling for a deeper form of stillness and one that lies at the root of our often agitated and chaotic state of mind. He is calling us to stop fighting against God. What God is pictured as doing here in Psalm 46 is exactly what God will do in our lives: he will “break the bow and shatter the spear,” and “burn the shields with fire.” In other words, God will break down our defences, he will triumph over our endless internal conflict against his claim upon us. He will conquer our hearts and bring peace. There is much within each one of us that fights against God and the only chance of peace we have is in allowing ourselves to be vanquished by God. The best way to end a conflict is to surrender. We will never win against God, so it is futile keeping up the fight. We will only exhaust ourselves by continuing to fight. There is great peace in the act of surrender and great joy. God is no tyrant. He is our loving father, and he comes to vanquish our hearts, not to tyrannize us, but to liberate us from the tyranny of a myriad of influences that oppress us. The act of surrender is the act of true worship. Let God be your God.
Ask God to overcome your resistance to his rule in your life.
Read Psalm 46
