Be still and know that I am God is a wonderful Taize worship song. The words come from Psalm 46 and are almost like a prayer to us from God. Saying - be still, stop fretting, know that I am here, that I love you and I have the power to calm whatever storms you are caught up in.
The Latin for Be still is actually ‘vacate.’ So, it’s like God is inviting us to take a holiday, to stop trying to be God ourselves for a while. And to remember that God truly is and God truly is almighty.
This means we can stop trying to do all the important things that need to be done – in our own strength – and take a break. And hand the reins over to God.
One of the over-riding and constant messages of the Bible is that we should beware of our need to be in control, our desire – as in the story of Adam and Eve – to become like God.
One of the most important things about prayer is to start off by remembering that God is God and we are not God. And that is a great relief. Because God loves us and wants to guide and help us and bless us.
But, unless we are willing to be still and allow God to be God, we may miss this. And we may miss out on all the joy, gifts and surprises that God wants to give us.