Be Still, and Know That I Am God
“Be still, and know that I am God!
I am exalted among the nations;
I am exalted in the earth.”
Psalm 46:10, NRSVUE
As a contemplative, my heart easily understands the first line of Psalm 46:10; however, the final two lines draw me deeper into the mystery of God.
To exalt God among the nations and in the earth feels to me like another way of saying: discern where God is working and go join God. To exalt is to put something above something else. Humanity has been wrestling with that impulse since Adam and Eve. So, I am not surprised that I had to pause longer to see how the final part of Psalm 46:10 applies to me.
What am I exalting above God?
Is it material? Are my possessions occupying space that belongs to God? Do I worry about things I cannot take with me—home, finances, employment, status?
Is it mental? Do my thoughts about life, the world, politics, and problems rise above God’s thoughts?
Is it spiritual? Is my identity as a Christian—my sacrifices for the kingdom, my beliefs, even my doubts—more important than God?
Where do I exalt things—or people—above God?
One thing I love about Psalm 46:10 is how the problem of exalting the wrong thing is not argued away but answered by stillness and knowing. I also love the fact that to be still and to know God naturally results in God being exalted above it all.
The moment we stop—what we are doing, thinking, holding, hoarding, hiding, and saying—everything begins to shift.