Find rest

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;

my hope comes from him.

He alone is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
My salvation and my honour depend on God;
 he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge.

                                                                                                            Psalm 62.5-8

Psalm 62 has long been one of my favourite psalms. I have chosen to reflect on the central passage where the psalmist speaks forth an exhortation to himself and then to the people.

The psalm begins with a declaration along similar lines to what the psalmist now exhorts. It is as if he is saying, “This is the truth. Now I exhort myself to receive and live in this truth. God is all I need. He is my very foundation and my life and this is how I must accept him.”

The words ‘find rest’ are suggestive of silence, silence in repose. I can rest silently and quietly in God’s full keeping. It reminds me of Paul’s rejoinder that I am to be anxious for nothing. Silent rest implies a deep and effective repose. There is no stress, strain, or striving. This psalm is one of the great expressions of simple trust in God. I’m pleased that God spoke to me through these words a long time ago. He spoke to me then, and He speaks to me now.

The significance of the psalmist exhorting himself before others is also applicable for me. I must know that I trust God before I can ever encourage others to do so. And that trust applies at all times, in any situation, whatever the visible circumstances suggest or yield. My God is greater than any diverse, threatening or simply unhelpful situation that I might find myself in. In God, alone, will I trust. He is surely and truly my refuge and my strength.

Lord God,

I am mindful that Your mercies are new every morning. I thank You for this as I come to You in renewed statement of my trust in You. I sense a move from reason and sight to faith and trust in the unseen. You are unseen, yet I know You are there. I rejoice in the relationship I have with you. I ask You also that our relationship might become even deeper. Hear my request to go further with You. My humble desire is to get so close to You that I might hear and feel Your heartbeat. And of course I wish to live fully in time with that beat. Your love amazes me. I receive Your love. I thank You deeply and sincerely for Your concern and care of me. I thank You for grace that receives me in Christ even though I am unacceptable in myself. In Christ I am alive, I am clean and I am able to go forward with You. Let me live for You – today and every day. Receive my further statement of trust in You. Increase that trust and faith in me, in Jesus’ Name I ask.                                                                  Amen.