“Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every ‘circumstance’. I will be honored throughout the world. The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress.” (Psalms 46:10-11)
The most powerful position we can take is to ‘be still’ before God. This is to enter into His rest, being led by His Spirit into the place we abide securely in His strength, power, and lovingkindness. It is here alone that our lives are able to work out, or more specifically, produce by the authority of His Spirit that resides in us, the fruit of Jesus’ character and nature. That is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.
We cannot produce these perfect fruits in and of ourselves; Jesus tells us, “without (abiding in) me, you can do ‘nothing’” (Jn 15:5). Sure, because we are created in the image of God (that is the character and nature of Jesus Christ) we can produce ‘forms’ of love, kindness, goodness, and hope; but these all lack the divine authority of the Holy Spirit, and are corrupted by our selfish sinful nature. Jesus tells us that everything produced in this manner, will be cast into the fire and burned up (Jn 15:6). Paul goes on to warn us that there is one foundation that has been laid, and that is Jesus Christ. He urges us to be careful how we build on that foundation, for “Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value (resulting from abiding in Christ). If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up (because it lacked the divine authority of The Spirit which results from abiding in Jesus) the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved (because they were ‘in Christ’ like the branch), but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames” (1 Cor 3:10-15).
If you want your life to have purpose and meaning… to be powerful and effective; then be still, quieting your soul, and know that He is God. It is for this very reason Paul wrote, “For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor 12:10b). Rest in Christ today, He is fighting for you. Turn to Him and quiet your soul, positioning yourself to hear His voice. Abide in His promises and let the Spirit lead you into all truth by which we bring into being by His authority. The choice is yours…
Choose wisely….
“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
Praying 4 U
Written by David Brown: David Brown is a husband, father, grandfather, Pastor with a Masters of Religious Studies and a Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Religions. Dave is the Associate Pastor of Pemberton’s First Baptist Church. He is the author of two devotional books, “From a Chair by the Window.” And “#PrayerWinsThe Day”.
Think About This: “Prayer is not bringing your list and asking God to sign on the bottom. Prayer is handing God a blank sheet that you have already signed and trusting him to fill it out as he sees fit.” ―
The Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 33-35; Matthew 11| You can download our 2022 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here.