God Pause, part two by Jan Hess

God Pause, part two

Finding ourselves on the threshold of the typically busiest, most chaotic time of the year, it seems providential that just last month you were introduced to “God Pause”, the Lord’s calming command spoken from the midst of overwhelming, unsettling times:  STOP. KNOW. I AM.   Some of you have recently come through overwhelming, unsettling times; some are finding yourselves stuck there; still others foresee them ahead.  A fresh read of Psalm 46 provides more encouragement for those who heed the call to “be still.” 

 

Have you noticed the repetitions in Psalm 46 which declare God’s continuous, reliable, uninterrupted presence? Check them out:

God is … verse 1

God is … verse 5

The Lord of Hosts is … verse 7

The God of Jacob is … verse 7

I Am … verse 10

The Lord of Hosts is … verse 11

The God of Jacob is … verse 11

 

English grammar 101 taught us that the statement “God is…” refers to the present tense.  God right now.  After noting the repeats, I wondered, “How many times is that?”  Seven reminders of God’s present-ness!  Suddenly, I remember that the number seven is very noteworthy in God-matters!  STOP. KNOW. I AM. “What does He want me to see?”  A quick research reveals that “seven” appears over 280 times in the Bible, most of which are contexts of great significance.  Another question arises, “Where is its first appearance?” In the first book, of course.  Genesis. The Book of Beginnings.  “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”  And it took seven days:  six days of work and one day of rest. What I learned next really captured my heart:  the number seven denotes both spiritual perfection AND rest!  God completed His perfect creation in six days, crowning it with rest on the seventh.  Perfection AND rest evidenced in this spectacular seven-day event!  And even now, in all our events--pleasant or unpleasant, encouraging or discouraging, triumphant or tragic—our God is present in perfection and rest.  

 

Along with the psalmist, we declare in the third person “God is.”  But what does it mean when God interjects in the first person, “I AM”?  To hear the answer we need to listen with Moses’ ears!  When he encountered God in the burning bush and asked His name, God responded, “YHWH.”  In that four letter Hebrew word--for which there were no vowels--the LORD did not merely say, “I Am God Right Now.“  No!  He declared, “Who I was is Who I am and Who I will be.”  God-outside-of-time!  An eternal and forever present-tense-ness! 

 

We humans, confined to time, thinking and speaking in yesterdays, todays and tomorrows, are barely able to grasp this amazing truth about our God.  It is this facet of His character that gives us assurance that all our yesterdays and all our todays and all our tomorrows are known by Him, handled by Him, ordained by Him. The psalmist reminds us that this “not-limited-by-time” God is, was, and will be our Refuge…our Strength…our Fortress…our Help…our Center…our Stronghold…our Companion in our every moment.  The Always-and-Forever-Present One. 

  

What comforting news for us in the midst of our busyness or bitterness…in the pain of a troubled marriage or a fractured family…in the pressure of a demanding job or debilitating illness!   The Perfect God, the Great I Am, the God of Jacob, the Lord of Hosts, is with us!  Let’s praise Him!

Lord, You are the One who was, the One who is and the One who always will be.  You are the same yesterday, today and forever.  The Perfect One, the Rest-giving One.  Today I choose to surrender all that I am to all that You are.  I REST in You, trusting that You are in the midst of every detail of my life and are using each situation to PERFECT me by, in and through Your grace.  In the busyness, in the chaos, in the restlessness, I choose to pause in You;  To STOP. KNOW. I AM.