Daily Dose of the World of God - Psalm 46

Erin Pacheco, Director of Worship

Transcript

Welcome to Elmhurst CRC’s Daily Dose of the Word of God. It’s Friday, November 8, and Sunday is coming! I’m Erin Pacheco.

SCRIPTURE:
Our reading today comes from Psalm 46. 
God is our refuge and strength,
    an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
    and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
    and the mountains quake with their surging.[c]
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
    the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within her, she will not fall;
    God will help her at break of day.
Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
    he lifts his voice, the earth melts.
The Lord Almighty is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Come and see what the Lord has done,
    the desolations he has brought on the earth.
He makes wars cease
    to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
    he burns the shields with fire.
“Be still, and know that I am God;
    I will be exalted among the nations,
    I will be exalted in the earth.”
The Lord Almighty is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our fortress.

SCRIPTURE:
This is a powerful psalm to pray whenever we face times of uncertainty, especially natural disasters or political tensions. Throughout the ages — whenever the earth shakes, whenever wars come, whenever kingdoms fall — the people of God have held fast to these words: God is our refuge and strength. Therefore we will not fear. The Lord Almighty is with us. 

Today, as we prepare for worship on Sunday, I want to focus on verse 10, which says “Be still and know that I am God.” We often think of these words as an invitation to slow down and be quiet before the Lord. Like, grab your coffee and Bible, sit in your favorite chair, and do your devotions. Which is fine!

But if we take this verse in context, surrounded by the chaos of the rest of the psalm, I’m struck by how God speaks these words as he decisively steps in to put an end to human wars and bickering and conflict. God breaks the weapons and burns the defenses, and then we hear the voice of God cutting through the noise: “Be still!”

Maybe a better translation would be “Stop.” Stop fighting, stop worrying, stop striving. Be still. And know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth. 

There’s a lot of noise right now. A lot of tension, and a lot of other “gods” vying for our trust. It’s easy to get sucked in. But maybe this weekend you need to just stop – and know that God is God. And God will be exalted as King over all the earth. 

PRAYER
Let’s pray. God, in this moment of stillness, I pause to hear your voice, and to know that you are God.  May you, and you alone, be exalted in my heart and in my life today. Amen.