Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations.

I will be exalted in the earth.

Psalm 46:10

Sometimes, by no decision of our own, things just slow down for us. Sometimes, life skids to a screeching halt and leaves us wondering what to do. It may be something serious, like a death in the family, or a bad medical diagnosis and everyone all around us is continuing but we feel frozen in time, like the world is spinning out of control. Or it could be that life just physically halts, as in the case of winter weather that keeps us from leaving our house.

As I sit on my couch drinking a cup of hot coffee, my view is of a snow filled ground that has been the cause of me staying at home from work today. I can’t leave my house because my dirt backroad is ice and snow covered. My children are with their dad this week and my husband is out of town on business. So here I sit, alone. Life seems to be standing still.

Of course, when there is time on my hands that I wasn’t expecting, I start thinking. Occasionally, my thoughts take me to negative places I shouldn’t go and I have to get out my bag of coping mechanisms to combat those thoughts. Spending time with Jesus is at the top of that list along with getting up and doing something that takes my mind off of the negativity. Writing often accompanies these moments as well.

Today I turn my attention to Jesus, and my loneliness suddenly disappears. My mind is turned toward Him and He gently urges me to consider others and move outside of myself.

I am reminded to “Be still and know that He is God.” When life halts, we have a unique opportunity to think on the things of God and praise Him for His hand in our life, whether we can see it at the moment or not. Life for me in this moment has come to a screeching halt because of weather but for so many others, life has been turned upside down by situations out of their control.

It’s harder to “Be still and know that He is God”  in moments filled with fear and pain. So as we go through our day, let’s remember those of us whose world have been turned upside down recently and pray for them. Their life as they knew it has halted. They may be struggling to regain composure and deal with a major turn of events. They may be struggling with their faith in God in the midst of an uncontrollable situation.

When life is busy, we must make the time to ‘Be still and know that He is God.”

And when our world comes to a screeching halt because of something so insignificant as the weather and we are tempted to complain about it, let’s make sure we make the time to focus our attention on God, listen to His word in our lives and pray for others.

So today, whether you are stuck at home or not, let’s:

• Be still and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10)
• Be still and know that God is my only source of true joy (Psalm 43:4)
• Be still and know that God is the true healer (Psalm 103:3)
• Be still and know that God will heal (Psalm 30:2)
• Be still and know that God will provide (Philippians 4:19)
• Be still and thank God for what He is doing (Isaiah 43:19)
• Be still and thank God for the opportunity to slow down and enjoy His presence (Psalm 16:11)
• Be still and trust that ALL things are in His hands (Romans 8:28)

Will you join me?