“Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” Psalm 46:10
The busyness didn’t creep up on me out of nowhere. I agreed to a gradual increase over time. The more I added to my calendar, the more I marveled at how many things had gathered there. Life accumulates. As we grow ourselves, our families, our friendships, and our place in our communities, there is a natural ebb and flow to the busyness that becomes us. For me, in particular, the busyness of raising two teen daughters is a delicate balance.
“Why can’t I just say ‘no'?” I recently said to a friend as we laughed that particular laugh that reveals a struggle we are all too familiar with. We want our kids to be happy and enjoy life, but our ‘yes’ and ‘no’ must be rooted in the right priorities if we don’t want to be trampled by busyness.
Today’s verse reminds me of my number one priority in life. The priority I was designed to put before everything else—or everything else kind of starts to crumble. God. He is number one. We are all created to put Him first in our lives. But to do that, two small words hold a big impact on the effect of our busyness: “Be still.” Be still. Wow, is it hard to be still in this world?! Still in the presence of God is different from the stillness of idleness, slothliness, boredom, laziness, or quietly quitting. Stillness with God activates our hearts, minds, and souls to their original purpose… to connect with Him.
“I listen carefully to what God the Lord is saying, for he speaks peace to his faithful people. But let them not return to their foolish ways.” Psalm 85:8
Be still and… know. Listen… carefully. These verses from Psalms are incredibly instructive but difficult to authentically embrace. We are in the habit of making noise. We add things to our calendars until the app lights up with multiple colors covering all days. We post them on our social media, documenting everything we have done and are doing. But how often do we find time to be still with God? How much time do we spend listening to what He is saying?
“He speaks peace to his faithful people.”
Peace is something we fill our calendars in search of! Unintentionally, we crave busyness for fulfillment. If everything on our schedules is in God’s timing, our lives will absolutely exude peace. But we don’t fill them that way! We have difficulty saying ‘no’ to things that will steal our peace. Things that may look God-centered when we say ‘yes’ to them! How do we know what harmful busyness is and what produces good fruit in our and our children’s lives?
“Listen carefully to what God the Lord is saying.”
“Be still and know that I am God!”
These empowering directives are the ticket to peace in this life. There isn’t a blueprint for healthy busyness that works for all of us. We are all so intricately designed and purposed that our Creator is the only One with the master key to unlock the right path for each life. The path purposed to bring all glory to Him and work all things for our good.
The busyness that has crept into my life has accumulated one ‘yes’ at a time. Some have been wise additions, and others have been put there by hasty decisions or the desire to please people over God. It happens. We can’t get it perfect on this earth. The best we can do is seek time with God. Prioritizing time with Him helps us to know which busyness is okay to take on – we are called to work hard at all the Lord gives us to do. But He also helps us cope with some of the things we shouldn’t have taken on, either to finish them well or hand them off. Let’s pray to find the time to be still with God.
Let’s pray,
God, You are amazing for putting up with our busyness. We fill up our time until we are about to burst and post it all over social media. We are kind of a mess, God! But in Your eyes, we are a glorious mess that You love compassionately and faithfully. Thank You for sticking with us, guiding us, and encouraging us with the little time we allocate to You. Help us to make sitting still with You our number one priority, God. In those moments, we experience true peace and pick up the instruction and encouragement we need to reach each day. Help us to obediently carve out time for You and to listen to what You say.
Father, thank You for Your Word. Thank You for prayer. Thank You for the busyness in our lives. Let all of it bring glory and honor to You—and what doesn’t, let it fall and fade away.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/INDU BACHKHETI
Meg writes about everyday life within the love of Christ at megbucher.com. She is the author of “Friends with Everyone, Friendship within the Love of Christ,” “Surface, Unlocking the Gift of Sensitivity,” “Glory Up, The Everyday Pursuit of Praise,” “Home, Finding Our Identity in Christ,” and "Sent, Faith in Motion." Meg earned a Marketing/PR degree from Ashland University but stepped out of the business world to stay home and raise her two daughters …which led her to pursue her writing passion. A contributing writer for Salem Web Network since 2016, Meg is now thrilled to be a part of the editorial team at Salem Web Network. Meg loves being involved in her community and local church, leads Bible study, and serves as a youth leader for teen girls.
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