our daily bread

[Dexu Xia]

Stop

Be still, and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10

My friend and I sat in the sand, near the ever-rhythmic ocean. As the sun sank in the distance, wave after wave curled, paused and then rippled toward our extended toes, stopping just short each time. “I love the ocean,” she smiled. “It moves so I don’t have to.”

What a thought! So many of us struggle to stop. We do, do, do and go, go, go, somehow afraid that if we cease our efforts we will cease to be. Or that by stopping we will expose ourselves to the ever-present realities we work to keep at bay.

In Psalm 46:8–9, God flexes His omnipotent muscles, putting His power on display. “Come and see what the Lord has done . . . . He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.” God is a busy God, who works to create calm within the chaos of our days.

And then in verse 10 we read, “Be still, and know that I am God.”

Of course it’s possible to know God while running here and there. But the psalmist’s invitation to cease striving beckons us into a different kind of knowing. A knowing that we can stop—and still be—because God never stops. A knowing that it is God’s power that gives us ultimate value, protection, and peace.

Dear God, help me to find my rest in You.

We rest well when we’re in the loving arms and perfect will of God.

停歇

你们要休息，要知道我是上帝！-诗篇46篇10节

我和朋友坐在沙滩上，享受岸边的海水轻抚双脚。远方夕阳西下，一波波的浪花淹过我们舒张开的脚趾头，停留片刻又随即退去。朋友微笑地说：“我爱大海，它会动，所以我不用动。”

多棒的想法！我们许多人都很难停下来，每日汲汲营营、不断冲刺，终日劳碌奔波，深恐一旦停止努力，我们就会失去生命的意义，或是害怕一旦停下来，就会落入自己努力避开的困境中。

诗篇46篇8-9节描述上帝施展了祂的大能：“你们来看耶和华的作为，……祂止息刀兵，直到地极；祂折弓、断枪，把战车焚烧在火中。”我们的上帝正忙着在我们生活的混乱中，为我们创造平静。

接着，我们在第10节读到：“你们要休息，要知道我是上帝！”

当然，我们在东奔西跑、忙忙碌碌的生活中仍然可以认识上帝，但诗人邀请我们停止忙乱，从而对上帝有更深一层的认识。认识到即使我们停歇和休息，生命仍然有意义，因为上帝从未停止祂的工作。认识到上帝的大能可以赐给我们正确的价值观，得着保守和平安。

亲爱的上帝，求祢帮助我在祢里面得享安歇。

唯有上帝爱的怀抱与完美的旨意，能让我们得享安歇。