Be Still and Know That I Am God

"Be still, and know that I am God" (Psalms 46:10). I think we often think of the word "still" in this verse as meaning calm or peaceful. But in addition to its meaning as an adjective, I would also like to consider what meaning we can derive if we treat the word "still" like an adverb. As an adverb, still can mean up to the present moment, even so, nevertheless, or all the same. Thus, "be still" can mean continue to be even so, or be all the same, despite what you may have endured. When we face all of the adversary's storms and hails and shafts in the whirlwind and continue to be still, or continue to exist even so, then we can know that God exists and watches over us. We can be cast into all sorts of life threatening situations and nevertheless survive and be still and know that God is. We can suffer all sorts of heart-rending tragedies and endure even so and be still and know that God is. We can confront all manner of temptations and personal weaknesses and overcome all the same and be still and know that God is. When we consider how truly fragile is the flickering flame of our existence and how fierce are the winds trying to extinguish that flame, every moment that we continue still to be is incontrovertible evidence that our loving Heavenly Father is and that He exists and loves us and cups our fragile little souls in the palms of His hands and He will not allow our flame to go out before its time. We may say that all of the terrible things that have happened to us is proof enough that either God doesn't exist or if He does, He isn't all powerful or all good. But isn't the fact that we have faced so many circumstances that should have killed us, or should have driven us past the edge of insanity, but we up to the present moment continue to be still, to exist even so, to live all the same - isn't this proof enough that God is? We may disagree vehemently over the shape of our lives and what is and isn't necessary for us to endure as part of our mortal experience, but to go through everything that we have gone through, all of the diseases and the accidents and the intentional violence that should have killed us, all of the betrayals and heartbreaks that should have driven us mad, all of the times that we have fought like hell against our personal demons, and to still be alive just goes to show that as hard as we have fought to stay alive, our God has fought a thousand times harder for our survival, as hard as we have wept, our God has wept a thousand times harder for all of our losses, as hard as we have bled, our God has bled a thousand times harder to save us from the very worst of the suffering, a suffering how sore and exquisite and hard to bear we know not. God is with us through it all and He will make sure that we continue to be still for as long as He needs us to stay alive and we can know that He exists and He is with us every step of the way, however painful and hard to bear.