It might sound, at first, like the writer of Psalm 131 is boasting about his own humility. But this isn’t what he is doing at all. The psalmist is testifying to the inherent reward in humility and faith. He has resolved to stop trying to understand and control his life. He has committed himself, in other words, to letting God be God. He is content, then, to rest transparently in the love and providence of God. He has chosen to accept the providence of the God who loves him and to submit to the fact that the ways of such a great God can never be fathomed. By recognising the transcendent greatness of God, and by resting in his providence, the psalmist found complete tranquillity. In this place of intimacy and trust he discovered an unshakable peace and stillness of soul. He likens the experience to that of a child that has just been weaned off its mother breast and lies contentedly and peacefully in her arms. So too when we rest our lives in the arms of God do we find a stillness of soul and a contentment that all the external threats of this world cannot take away from us. The final cry of the psalm sums up the reason for this personal spiritual testimony. The psalmist wants people to see the inward spiritual rewards of humility in order that they might trust in God. “O Israel,” he says, “hope in the LORD.” From his position of peace, the psalmist longs that all of God’s people would experience what he has experienced. The key is in faith and humility. That means letting God be God.
Ask God to help you trust him more.
Read Psalm 131.
