Be Still

Life is a rat race.

The older I get, the more I realize that. I feel like I race out of the house in the morning, race around all day at work, race and do my extra activities, race back home, and fall into bed, completely exhausted. Oftentimes, I have wonderful intentions of getting up early to have devotions but most days, it doesn't go like I planned. As a Plan B, I tell myself that I will have prayer before I go to bed. That is simply the worst idea ever. Before I even get halfway through my prayer, I am already asleep.

Does this race slow down at some point? How do I manage my hectic schedule and still take time for the most important things?

These questions have been a source of great puzzlement recently. After all, it is my desire to put God first, but it is so easy to put Him last because He is so patient and quiet. Think about it: the general public does not care if you had your prayer that morning. All they want is their product. The activities you have to accomplish do not hinge on if you had your worship. They start when they start, regardless if you properly prepared yourself for the day. Yet, God is so patient. He doesn't demand our attention. He lets us do our activities. He gently speaks to us and most times, goes unnoticed.

He lets us do our own thing. Willingly.

Why? Wouldn't it be easier to have Him demand that we spend more time with Him? It would then be a priority and we would be keenly aware that if we didn't pray and keep in tune with God that our soul would suffer. But what we often forget is the very fact that it is priority for a successful Christian life. However, we can often dismiss the responsibility with a perfectly good alternative priority.

In Psalm 46:10 it says: "Be still..."

It doesn't say: "be somewhat still."

It says: "be still."

God's whole purpose for our lives was to have a relationship with Him. He didn't want us to feel forced. He wanted it to solely be a personal decision.

By being still, we choose Jesus over all the other things that are crowding our minds and lives. We chose life when we choose to be still in the presence of the King.