Be Still

One of my sons is one of those kids who can never sit still. Always flitting about from one place to the next, never finishing what he starts before he’s off to something else.

And he’s got to touch everything – and everyone. We his parents are forever saying “keep your hands to yourself”.

 I think he gets the hyperactivity part of it from me. Watching movies at the cinema is a struggle, having to sit in a chair without moving for so long. I stand up when riding on the train so I can move about. Long car drives just about kill me.

Jiggle, squirm, twist, turn, stretch, walk, run, always moving. Even in bed at night I toss and turn, dragging blankets and sheets here there and everywhere.

There’s a verse in the Bible that says ‘be still and know that I am God’. Which obviously presents a challenge to someone like me who has trouble being still.

But I read recently that the Hebrew word for ‘still’ apparently means “to cease striving”. It’s more a concept of putting our hands down and letting God take care of the situation without my interfering. It was a helpful word picture for me. We use our hands to grab things, or to push things out of the way. Our hands are used to protect ourselves – if I’m going to be struck by something or someone I put my hands up. With hands by our side we feel a bit more open and vulnerable. When we have our hands on something we feel more in control (ala the car steering wheel!)

So the message from God may be more along the lines of : “keep your hands to yourself. Stop pushing or pulling or grabbing – let me help. Stop struggling and allow me to do my thing.”

In all of the circumstances of life, we can better experience the presence of God, the power of God and the peace of God, if we’ll just drop our hands, and allow God to use His.

@lane_colin
www.salvationarmy.org.au/mornington