Be Still

Be Still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10)

The skies host the magnificent displays of the Creator. Every type of cloud adorns the clear blue backdrop. Swirls and wisps ballet around puffy flat bottomed clouds. It’s a treat for the eyes.

It’s spring in the mountains. The only thing predictable about the weather in these parts this time of year is the erratic inconsistency. The mountains, in their royal splendor, stand tall in the background playing games with the clouds pushing them here and there seemingly at will.

One minute I might be rolling up my sleeves to start some warm weather project outdoors and before the thought can become reality it’s squelched by a squall of snow, or rain, or any number of precipitation combinations. The wind is blowing. That much I can predict with a relative amount of certainty. I just won’t know how strong or from which direction, or the degree of the chill that will ride in with it.

It will some time yet before we start to see spring really make an appearance. For now I delight in the little things. The first robins who are brave enough to set up house early in the season, the green shoots of grass hiding cautiously under last years casualties, and the longer periods of daylight give enough hope to get me excited about the coming season.

I have even come to appreciate the Wyoming winds. Change is riding in on the wings of windy days and after a long winter, who isn’t ready for some change? I can even appreciate not knowing what to expect when I wake up every morning not to mention an hour from now. It’s a stunning reminder of the One who is in control. Sometimes no matter how noble my plans or how longingly I wish for warmer days God lets me know that He is the Creator.

Capricious conditions like these, in the changing Wyoming seasons and in the seasons of life, call me to slow down and take it in. I listen for the still, small voice that says, “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10) I muster the faith I need to be comforted by these words knowing that the God who whispers to me is the same God who said to the wind, "Quiet! Be still!” in Mark 39. “Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.”