Psalm 46:10

• How can you be still and know God this week? One of my best friends in middle school used to have this habit of shifting his weight when standing. You could pick him out from anywhere because he was always moving—taking teeny little steps to the left, then the right, then the left, and so on and so forth. Joey was always moving.

We used to tease him about it. “Joey, take a chill pill!” We’d mock (this was a huge burn back in the day). “Joey, calm down! It’s just Algebra class!” Joey was a good sport about it. But I remember learning in high school that Joey had severe ADHD, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, meaning that he had a chronic problem with paying attention and sitting still. I felt ashamed. We’d been making fun of Joey for years for something that he couldn’t control! And something that, I was realizing, caused him significant challenges in school. I remember apologizing to Joey, who was supremely generous about the whole thing and used to the ragging by then. “Still,” I said. “It doesn’t make it right.” He said he appreciated that.

The truth? Sitting still isn’t my strong suit either— only for me, it’s spiritual. I can sit through a lecture on the driest subject with no problem. I can talk to the chattiest uncle at the family picnic about the lamp and lighting market for hours on end (true story, ugh). My angst is spiritual. I worry, fret, and busy myself with devotions, tasks, and church involvement to soothe my festering anxiety: Does God really forgive all of our sins? Is God disappointed in me? What happens to us when we die? Is God real? Am I doing enough? Am I enough?

Being still might come easier to some of us than others. Being “still” in our faith is both challenging and a privilege. We get to be still because we know that God is in control. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”