Be still, and know that I am God! 
I am exalted among the nations; 
I am exalted in the earth. 
(Psalm 46:10, NRSVue)

Grace and peace to you from God our heavenly Father and Jesus Christ the Lord and Savior. Amen.

I remember singing a choir anthem years ago based on Psalm 46. “Be still” was heavily repeated, especially in the soprano line. In retrospect, it was an interesting arrangement – there is something paradoxical about singing, “Be still!” with a crescendo.

As paradoxical as it may seem, how do we live out the command, “Be still and know that I am God” with gusto? It may be the ultimate example of active listening. The first challenge is to identify our own thoughts and preconceptions – that static that muddles our hearing. Once we name the crackling clamor within ourselves, we might have a shot at silencing it (or at least dialing down the volume).

On top of the noise we each carry, we also live in a pretty noisy world. There are countless voices vying for our attention, energy, and allegiance. We are constantly hearing messages about who we are (or can or should be). Weeding through (and out) the many messages we ‘hear’ each day can be daunting.

Recently, the weather mentioned a ‘derecho’ hitting South Dakota. Curiosity won. I googled what exactly a derecho was. This is the oversimplified definition. Apparently, it is a widespread, destructive storm system that can occur when multiple (already strong) storm systems are shoved together and propel forward as one mega system. Sometimes, all the ‘noise’ in our lives feels like a derecho. The distractions inside our minds and out in the world coalesce into a deafening cacophony.

Elijah waited for God’s voice to come to him while hiding from Jezabel and her cronies. 1 Kings relates Elijah’s experience of hearing a great wind, then an earthquake, and then a fire. In none of those three did God speak. God’s voice emerged out of sheer silence. Then Elijah relayed all the ‘other noises’ interfering with his hearing – his fears, his grief, his despair. And God spoke. God spoke a word of hope to Elijah out of the silence.

God is still speaking. Sometimes we need to wait patiently for the silence to emerge. There is a lot of noise in the world and in ourselves. Remember…God has the power to silence the noise. God’s voice does not become louder. God’s voice overcomes and conquers. That voice speaks hope to you. That voice claims you as God’s beloved child. Nothing can silence the hope spoken to you in Christ Jesus.

The grace and peace of God keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.