| Standing On The Promises |
Standing On The Promises"
Psalms 46
January 20, 2008
It can be rather frustrating to know that God is present, but not know what
God is saying. How often have you and I pleaded in prayer, "God, I’m
scared. I’m not sure what to do. What am I supposed to be doing? Just
tell me."
I can say that for me… it is almost a daily prayer from my heart.
Our prayers tend to revolve around the need for concrete answers to
those things that cause us concern. We tend to have a need for tangible
expressions of what God would have us do, we tend to have a need for
guidance to alleviate our concerns. Or, more accurately, we tend to have
a need to tell God what we would like to have happen.
Even though we ask for God’s guidance, at times, in our hectic world, it
can seem like an impossibility to clearly hear what God's voice is saying
to us.
Our scripture this morning suggests that, sometimes, we just need to “be
still and know that God is.”
“Be still and know that God is.” It’s all about listening.
Here’s a story for you:
In one of his memoirs President Franklin D. Roosevelt told of a time
when he had gotten tired of smiling that big smile and saying the usual
things at all those White House receptions. So, one evening he decided
to find out whether anybody was paying attention to what he was saying.
As each person came up to him with an extended hand, he flashed that
big smile and said, “I murdered my grandmother this morning.” People
would automatically respond with comments such as “How lovely!” or
“Just continue with your great work!”
Nobody listened to what he was saying, except one foreign diplomat.
When the president said, “I murdered my grandmother this morning,” the
diplomat responded softly, “I’m sure she had it coming to her.”
There are times when we are so busy… so involved with our own
thoughts… our own words… our needs…. times when we are so busy
trying to impress… that we fail to listen. And, I would suggest that we fail
to listen to God more than to anyone else.
The psalmist, in Psalms 46, is singing the praises of God and how we
have no need to fear. Nice words, but the reality is we do fear. The
reality is we can become so caught up in our fears, so caught up in
making sure that God is aware of our fears, that we can’t hear God’s
response. I would suggest that there are times when our prayers
become reflex - rather than reflection. Times when our prayers are
forced out of our fears - rather than coming out of our faith. Perhaps,
those are the times when we should reread verse 10 of the 46th Psalm.
Quite powerfully and clearly God is quoted as saying, "Be still, and know
that I am God!"
"Be still, and know that I am God!"
It is as if God is saying, "Enough already - it’s time to trust with your
whole being that I truly am the refuge, the strength, the ever-present help
that you keep talking about. It’s time to stop the chatter and begin the
trust."
Time to trust.
There is a story told about a weary traveler in the early days of our
country who had come to the banks of the Mississippi for the first time. A
time when getting to and fro was still accomplished by walking or
horses. There was no wide, four-lane, concrete interstate bridge
crossing the river. In fact, there was no bridge whatsoever! It was early
winter, and the surface of the mighty stream was covered with ice.
Should he dare cross over? Would the uncertain ice bear his weight?
Night was falling and it was urgent that he reach the other side. Finally
after much hesitation and with many fears he began to creep cautiously
across the surface of the ice on his hands and knees. He thought that he
might distribute his weight as much as possible and keep the ice from
breaking beneath him.
About halfway over, he heard the sound of singing behind him. Out of the
dusk there came a man, driving a horse-drawn load of coal across the
ice and singing merrily as he went his way.
Here he was - on his hands and knees, trembling because he was
fearful the ice would not be strong enough to hold him up! And there, as
if whisked away by the winter's wind, went the man, his horse, his sleigh,
and his load of coal, upheld by the very same ice on which he was
creeping!
Like the weary traveler, some of us have learned only to creep upon the
promises of God. Cautiously, timidly, trembling we venture forth upon
God's promises, as if the lightness of our step might make them more
secure. The psalmist reminds us that God is our refuge and strength, an
ever-present help in trouble. The psalmist reminds us that the Lord
Almighty is with us. We don’t need to be timid as we approach life -
because God has promised to be with us.
But, we will lose that sense of presence… we will lose our feeling of
refuge... we will lose our sense of strength… if we don’t take pause in
the midst of the pressure, to remember and experience the simple fact
that… God… is.
Be still and know that I am God.
Be still and know that I am God. It is when we enter the stillness that we
can truly begin to hear what God is saying.
So what is God saying to you as an individual? I don't know. But the fact
is, God has promised to be with you. Be still and know God!
Is God telling you to pursue a particular vocation? I don't know. But the
fact is, God has promised to uphold you. No matter how thin the ice you’
re on.
Is the spiritual path you’re on the right one? I don't know. But the fact is,
God has promised you victory over all of your spiritual enemies. And
above all God has accepted you, promising full and free forgiveness for
all sins, self-imposed or other-imposed.
I read somewhere that there are some 8000 promises in the Bible –
God, through the voices of the prophets, and the voices of the disciples,
and the voice of Jesus, made 6000 of them. Those promises hold for
each of us today. God didn't - God doesn't make them for us to creep
upon, as if they were too fragile to hold us up.
We can stand with confidence upon the promises of God. Be still - and
know that God is! Then, is when you will hear God guiding you forward.
Just a thought.
Psalms 46
January 20, 2008
It can be rather frustrating to know that God is present, but not know what
God is saying. How often have you and I pleaded in prayer, "God, I’m
scared. I’m not sure what to do. What am I supposed to be doing? Just
tell me."
I can say that for me… it is almost a daily prayer from my heart.
Our prayers tend to revolve around the need for concrete answers to
those things that cause us concern. We tend to have a need for tangible
expressions of what God would have us do, we tend to have a need for
guidance to alleviate our concerns. Or, more accurately, we tend to have
a need to tell God what we would like to have happen.
Even though we ask for God’s guidance, at times, in our hectic world, it
can seem like an impossibility to clearly hear what God's voice is saying
to us.
Our scripture this morning suggests that, sometimes, we just need to “be
still and know that God is.”
“Be still and know that God is.” It’s all about listening.
Here’s a story for you:
In one of his memoirs President Franklin D. Roosevelt told of a time
when he had gotten tired of smiling that big smile and saying the usual
things at all those White House receptions. So, one evening he decided
to find out whether anybody was paying attention to what he was saying.
As each person came up to him with an extended hand, he flashed that
big smile and said, “I murdered my grandmother this morning.” People
would automatically respond with comments such as “How lovely!” or
“Just continue with your great work!”
Nobody listened to what he was saying, except one foreign diplomat.
When the president said, “I murdered my grandmother this morning,” the
diplomat responded softly, “I’m sure she had it coming to her.”
There are times when we are so busy… so involved with our own
thoughts… our own words… our needs…. times when we are so busy
trying to impress… that we fail to listen. And, I would suggest that we fail
to listen to God more than to anyone else.
The psalmist, in Psalms 46, is singing the praises of God and how we
have no need to fear. Nice words, but the reality is we do fear. The
reality is we can become so caught up in our fears, so caught up in
making sure that God is aware of our fears, that we can’t hear God’s
response. I would suggest that there are times when our prayers
become reflex - rather than reflection. Times when our prayers are
forced out of our fears - rather than coming out of our faith. Perhaps,
those are the times when we should reread verse 10 of the 46th Psalm.
Quite powerfully and clearly God is quoted as saying, "Be still, and know
that I am God!"
"Be still, and know that I am God!"
It is as if God is saying, "Enough already - it’s time to trust with your
whole being that I truly am the refuge, the strength, the ever-present help
that you keep talking about. It’s time to stop the chatter and begin the
trust."
Time to trust.
There is a story told about a weary traveler in the early days of our
country who had come to the banks of the Mississippi for the first time. A
time when getting to and fro was still accomplished by walking or
horses. There was no wide, four-lane, concrete interstate bridge
crossing the river. In fact, there was no bridge whatsoever! It was early
winter, and the surface of the mighty stream was covered with ice.
Should he dare cross over? Would the uncertain ice bear his weight?
Night was falling and it was urgent that he reach the other side. Finally
after much hesitation and with many fears he began to creep cautiously
across the surface of the ice on his hands and knees. He thought that he
might distribute his weight as much as possible and keep the ice from
breaking beneath him.
About halfway over, he heard the sound of singing behind him. Out of the
dusk there came a man, driving a horse-drawn load of coal across the
ice and singing merrily as he went his way.
Here he was - on his hands and knees, trembling because he was
fearful the ice would not be strong enough to hold him up! And there, as
if whisked away by the winter's wind, went the man, his horse, his sleigh,
and his load of coal, upheld by the very same ice on which he was
creeping!
Like the weary traveler, some of us have learned only to creep upon the
promises of God. Cautiously, timidly, trembling we venture forth upon
God's promises, as if the lightness of our step might make them more
secure. The psalmist reminds us that God is our refuge and strength, an
ever-present help in trouble. The psalmist reminds us that the Lord
Almighty is with us. We don’t need to be timid as we approach life -
because God has promised to be with us.
But, we will lose that sense of presence… we will lose our feeling of
refuge... we will lose our sense of strength… if we don’t take pause in
the midst of the pressure, to remember and experience the simple fact
that… God… is.
Be still and know that I am God.
Be still and know that I am God. It is when we enter the stillness that we
can truly begin to hear what God is saying.
So what is God saying to you as an individual? I don't know. But the fact
is, God has promised to be with you. Be still and know God!
Is God telling you to pursue a particular vocation? I don't know. But the
fact is, God has promised to uphold you. No matter how thin the ice you’
re on.
Is the spiritual path you’re on the right one? I don't know. But the fact is,
God has promised you victory over all of your spiritual enemies. And
above all God has accepted you, promising full and free forgiveness for
all sins, self-imposed or other-imposed.
I read somewhere that there are some 8000 promises in the Bible –
God, through the voices of the prophets, and the voices of the disciples,
and the voice of Jesus, made 6000 of them. Those promises hold for
each of us today. God didn't - God doesn't make them for us to creep
upon, as if they were too fragile to hold us up.
We can stand with confidence upon the promises of God. Be still - and
know that God is! Then, is when you will hear God guiding you forward.
Just a thought.
DeWitt United Methodist Church
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