How well do you know God?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Be still, and know that I am God;
(Psalms 46:10a (NIV))

How often can you take the time to sit in silence? If you are like me, the hectic lifestyles that we live do not allow any time like this. Yet, God has made us for these times. He did not make us to live in this hectic pace. He made us to be at peace with Him, with the world, and with ourselves.

How can we receive this peace?

God told us to “Be still, and know that I am God.” He did not tell us to live our lives frantically striving to attain something worldly. He told us to be still.

God is not going to shout to get our attention. God is a gentleman. He will not force Himself on anyone, yet He is there for everyone. You must approach Him! You must then learn to be still in His presence and nurture the relationship that He longs to have with you. You must learn to long for a relationship with God.

How do you approach someone that you wish to get to know? Do you go somewhere where it is really noisy, or do you go somewhere where it is quiet and you can talk. God wishes to talk to us in this manner. He also wishes for us to talk to Him in this manner.

Be still and listen.

Be still and talk.

Be still and know.

How well do you know God?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you know the Lord well enough to know that He will be exalted?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Be still, and know that I am God;
(Psalms 46:10a (NKJV))

As most of you know, my ministry is built upon this passage. For the most part, I have focused on the first part of Psalm 46:10, for this is where we are called to be still and know God. This focus was to remind us that we can truly learn to be still in His presence, for it is only when we can truly be still and acknowledge Him do we truly understand His love, power and authority. When we are still in His presence is also when we learn to hear from the Lord. It is when we experience the intimacy that our spirit yearns for. It is when we experience the Lord as Abba, Father.

How is your relationship with the Lord? Do you proclaim that He is your Father? Are you able to spend time completely still in His presence?

Are any of us able to completely stop the cares of this world and focus on God? Perhaps if we go beyond the first part of this passage we can begin to see the results, for what is truly happening in this passage is much different than most people realize. This passage was written immediately after a time of extreme panic by the people of Israel. They were surrounded by a vast army that had never been defeated. They were facing certain defeat and perhaps annihilation at the hands of this enemy. The king humbled himself before the Lord, and to make a long story short, the Lord defeated the army over night. Those who were not killed fled for their lives. Through this, we learn another aspect of God. We learn that He is a mighty warrior who will protect those who love Him and call upon His name. We learn that He will do mighty things in the sight of the nations that will glorify Him as He saves those who believe!

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 (NKJV))

Are you fearful because of the things in this world that are surrounding you at this very moment?

Be still!

Are you so full of panic that you only see the enemy and not the Savior?

Be still!

If we profess a faith in Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior, it is time to sit at the feet of the Lord and remember what He has already done and what He promises that He will do. We are not on our own! We must remember that we don’t have to handle things by ourselves. If you are concerned about anything, be still and allow God to handle it. If you stop and let Him manifest His plan, you will see that He will be exalted. Do not be afraid! Be still!

Do you know the Lord well enough to know that He will be exalted?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you know the heart of God?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
(Matthew 24:37-41 (NIV))

Isn’t it amazing how easily we get so wrapped up in our own little worlds that we ignore the things that we should truly be wrapped up in?

Some people take this to the extreme with respect to the blessings they have been given in this world. They ignore spouse, children, other family and friends all for the sake of doing something that truly has no value beyond the day. No wonder the coming of the Son of Man will be as it is foretold. Even if we, as humanity, are given blatant signs that the time is drawing near, we will miss them because we are so wrapped up in our daily lives that are completely focused on our own little worlds.

Perhaps Psalms 46:10 is more appropriate than we care to admit when it tells us “Be still, and know that I am God.” We have let the worldly things become our gods and we pay homage to them in our frantic pace while we ignore the one, true God. God gave us our lives to enjoy. We are to enjoy each other. We are to use the talents that He has given us. We are to care for the world that He created for us. We are to embrace the salvation that He has given to us, and, especially, we are to enjoy our time with God.

Don’t get so wrapped up in this world that you miss what is truly important in your life.

Where is family?

Where is friendship?

Where is quiet time to sit at the feet of Jesus and to be still and know God?

Don’t be left behind because you did not know the heart of God!

Do you know the heart of God?

Copyright 1998 – 2019 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you glow with the glory of the Lord?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord.
(Exodus 34:29 (NIV))

Very few people have been able to do what Moses did on Mount Sinai. Adam and Eve walked with God before the fall from grace. Abraham heard God call him to a new land. Moses spoke with God on Mount Sinai. The prophets relayed God’s messages to the people and the disciples spoke face to face with Jesus. Even in these examples, only Moses is recorded as being radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. Moses was the only person since the fall from grace to have been in God’s glorious presence. It makes me wonder what Adam and Eve looked like since they walked with God. Were they radiant in their appearance?

Do you long to radiate with the presence of the Lord?

Do you long to spend time in His glorious presence?

Do you long to hear His Word and have it become such a part of you that your very countenance glows with His righteousness?

Do you want others to see this radiance on you and in you and know that you love the Lord?

I realize that I ask a lot of questions, but a relationship with the Lord is a personal matter and the only way to truly build that relationship is to know what you truly desire on a personal level. It is not based on what your parents did. It is not based on what I write. It is not based on what your children do. It is not based on what your preacher says. It is entirely based on your personal desire to spend time in the presence of the Lord. I honestly believe that this is why I love the following verse so much. It reminds me that I am nothing if I do not spend time in God’s presence, if I do not allow the Lord’s grace to overflow onto me, into me and through me.

Be still, and know that I am God;
(Psalms 46:10a (NIV))

Is it obvious to others that the Lord’s radiance is upon you?

Do you glow with the glory of the Lord?

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Has God confided in you?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them. My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only he will release my feet from the snare.
(Psalms 25:14-15 (NIV))

“Be still, and know that I am God;
(Psalms 46:10a (NIV))

You can’t have Psalms 25:14-15 without fulfilling the command of Psalms 46:10.

To have the privilege of having God confide in you, you must take the time to be still in His presence. You must desire the knowledge of Him who calls you to be His own.

There are certain principles in life that apply both to the physical world as well as the spiritual world. One of these principles is “that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” If you push God away, then it seems that He gets further and further away. If you desire to draw Him close, then He will become closer to you. In reality, God never goes anywhere. He is always there calling out to you, but, appearances are everything. When you push Him away, it seems that He is no where to be seen. It is a matter of the heart.

Since it is a matter of the heart, it is important to fill your heart with matters that are of God. Take the time to be still and know God on an intimate and personal level and He will confide in you.

Has God confided in you?

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Have you put forth the effort?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

“Be still, and know that I am God;
(Psalms 46:10a (NIV))

What are the things in life that you feel that you know so well that you can correct someone if they say something wrong? What did it take for you to come to this knowledge of this subject? Did it just come to you naturally? Were you born with the understanding that you possess? Did you wake up one morning to find that you had become the recognized expert in that topic?

If you are like me, none of these things have happened to you. You may possess a God given talent or understanding , but you still do not possess a complete knowledge of the subject. Where God has planted the seed of talent or understanding, you must work to expand that knowledge. If you love mathematics, you cannot become a college calculus teacher without expending the effort to further your knowledge and understanding. If you love football and can quote stats of each team and player, what drove that knowledge? Even if you have a so-called photographic memory, it requires an effort to place things in your memory. It requires an effort – a decision to pursue the very thing that you love.

Do you love God? Do you put forth the effort to get to know Him and come to a fuller understanding of Him?

Think about those questions in relation to the concepts previously introduced.

Have you put forth the effort, have you made a conscious decision to pursue God and to know Him and His Word? The sad thing about this is that you do not need to pursue Him, for He is pursuing you. He is always there waiting for you to turn to Him. He is waiting for you to ask if you can sit at His feet and get to know Him.

I still love the New American Standard Bible translation of this passage:

Cease striving, and know that I am God:
(Psalms 46:10a (NASB))

All of our lives we strive to possess something. We even feel that we need to strive to possess God. To some extent, we do, but not in the same way that we strive for other things in our lives. When we seek God, He gives us rest. When we strive for things of this world, we have no rest. When we cease striving, we find God in all of His glory because we find the time to simply sit in His presence. The work that we are called to do in order to know God is to stop and listen. The definition of work is an activity in which one exerts strength or faculties. Too many of us make knowing God a major work task. It is much easier than we make it. All we need to do is to “Be still” or “Cease striving” and allow God to open our hearts and our minds.

Do you need to cease striving in the worldly sense so that you may know that He is God?

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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We all need rest!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
(Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV))

I want to start off by saying thank you to all that have supported this ministry.

With that said, we all need rest. We need time to get away from the world and slow down and enjoy what God has created. We all need to spend time refreshing and strengthening our relationships whether these relationships are between a married couple or between yourself and Jesus. We need to take the time to recharge our batteries so that we can face the things that this world throws at us. Lately, I have seen far more than I could ever imagine being thrown at the Body of Christ. I feel a heaviness in my spirit. I need rest.

I have been blessed with a lovely lady as my wife for twenty-five years. I have been blessed with a family that loves the Lord. I have been blessed by God in so many ways. One blessing that I never imagined happening is my sharing of God’s Word through this devotional ministry. I may not have riches as the world thinks of riches, but I am rich in ways that the world can’t imagine.

There is a spiritual war that is unfolding. It is spilling over into the physical world. We all need to rest in Jesus so that we may be prepared for what is coming. Take the time to slow down and spend time with God. Listen for the Holy Spirit. Follow the words of Jesus. Spend time with God.

“Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
(Psalms 46:10 (NIV))

I love the first line of this passage. Many people use it and ignore the next two lines, but today, I feel that the last two lines of this passage need to be used and heard. We are to be still and listen to God. This gives us insight into His heart and His desires. Many people, and I probably have been guilty of this, use the first line of this passage to show what you need to do to get to know God without stressing the last two lines, which tell us why we need to know God.

The world is falling apart and many people believe that we are in the End Times. We are to know God so that we may tell a fallen, sinful world about salvation and grace. We are to exalt God and tell of His plan for redeeming each of us. God is to be exalted so that others may see Him and what He offers to those who will simply ask.

Sometimes we need to reset our priorities. Sometimes we need to spend time in our relationships. Sometimes we need to listen more than we talk. Sometimes we need to rest so that we may be better prepared to continue.

See you in a week.

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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