Nations Are In Uproar, Kingdoms Fall . . .

I am writing this as the attempted coup is going down in Washington, D.C.  This after a year of record deaths from Covid-19, racist killings and subsequent protests, a fraught election, social isolation, business shutdowns, and high anxiety all over the map.

I immediately went to Psalm 46.  This psalm was written for this day:

“God is our refuge and our strength,

an ever present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way

and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea.”

Then the second stanza feels close to home:

“Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;

he lifts his voice, the earth melts.”

Chaos often reigns on the earth, and that’s what the psalmist is acknowledging.  But the stability of God is the theme of the psalm.  Nations may be in uproar, but God is still God. Psalm 46 goes on to reassure us

“The Lord Almighty is with us,

the God of Jacob is our fortress. . . .

He makes wars to cease to the ends of the earth;

he breaks the bow and shatters the spear,

he burns the shields with fire.”

And then comes my favorite line, the crux of the poem:  

“Be still, and know that I am God.”

This doesn’t mean “sit still in church and show your reverence.”  It also doesn’t mean to sit down and read your Bible or have a “quiet time.” I think it’s been used that way some by people misunderstanding the larger context.  Instead, it’s one of the most calming, assuring verses in all the Bible.  It means, “still your heart, don’t panic regardless of what pandemonium swirls around you, go deep inside and recognize that God is still God.”

This is how some people retain serenity in the midst of tumult, by deeply trusting God’s power and presence.  The older I get, the more I realize the tumult doesn’t ever really go away.  So we can’t center our peace on our circumstances.  Let’s center our serenity in the presence of God.