Psalm 131 – LORD, my heart is not proud; my eyes are not haughty. I don’t concern myself with matters too great or too awesome for me to grasp. Instead, I have calmed and quieted myself, like a weaned child who no longer cries for its mother’s milk. Yes, like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, put your hope in the LORD now and always.

Psalm 131 is a psalm of ascent which was sung as the Jewish pilgrims made their way up to Jerusalem to observe the feasts of the Lord. In it David shares three things that will bring us what thousands of dollars, many doctors and countless pills never can, real rest. Where worldly contentment comes from inactivity and perfect circumstances, Godly contentment can traverse all of life’s circumstances. David reveals that the first key to contentment is:

● HUMILITY
When David said, “Lord, my heart is not proud my eyes are not haughty” he is talking about not being high minded. Today we live in a society stuck on self, where we are dying in the millions from the deadly disease of ME. It is a society consumed by the need to always be right, and preoccupied with being pampered. But David’s heart attitude was one that didn’t have to be served, he was a humble man. The reason this statement speaks so loudly is that it wasn’t coming from a commoner but a king. Not just any King, but the King of Israel, from the one who’s throne would stand forever. Given his position it would be easy to have a haughty heart but David didn’t have an inflated sense of self importance. I think one of the reasons why is because even though he was a king, he had never stopped being the shepherd boy that Samuel anointed. David didn’t let success swell his ego, he didn’t let the place God had put him in puff his pride. So often we use God’s gifts as a platform for pride, parading around because of some position God has placed us in. But David remained a servant, he didn’t change just because he was put into the position of a king. This is a rare thing today, many let blessing go to their heads instead of their hands and feet. A modern day model of humility that always comes to mind when I read Psalm 131 is Billy Graham. A man who through the years has remained both humble and real. I think like David in his heart he never stopped being a farm boy from North Carolina, even though God made him one of the greatest evangelists the world has known. David reminds us that the key to humility is humble servanthood. When we live life always having to be right, preoccupied with being pampered, then we not only miss the point but we will become miserable people. We have created a society of the selfishly sensitive, where we demand our rights even at he expense of others. Humility starts with attitude which then flows into action. As David talks about humility in attitude, first he deals with how we think about self, “my heart is not proud” not being puffed up with a sense of our own importance. Second how we think about others, “my eyes are not haughty” so as to not expressing arrogance or contempt towards others. How you view self will in large part dictate how you view and treat others. In Matthew 20:26-27 Jesus said: “whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave” Our heart position of pride or humility will either cause us to look up or down on when it comes to others. It is interesting to see the progression of personal evaluation in Paul’s life:
• I am the least of the apostles- 1 Corinthians 15:9
• I am the least of all the saints- Ephesians 3:8
• I am the chief of sinners- 1 Timothy 1:15
Positionally what is the pulse of your heart, servant or superior? We need this reminder that the greatest key to contentment is to die to self importance, to surrender our selfish demands and don the attitude of a servant. Just as Jesus, who alone deserved all praise and honor, girded himself with a towel and washed the disciples feet, so we must also seek to serve. Yet everywhere we look pride worms its way into the fabric of our lives.
We take pride in our birth and rank, but it’s said of Jesus, He was a carpenter’s son.
We take pride in possessions, but it’s said of Jesus, “The Son of man had no place to lay His head.”
We take pride in our respectability, but it’s said of Jesus, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
We take pride in our personal appearance, but it’s said of Jesus, “He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him”
We take pride in our reputation, but it’s said of Jesus, “Here is a glutton and a drunkard”
We take pride in our friendships, but it’s said of Jesus, “He was a friend of tax collectors and sinners.”
We take pride in our independence, but Jesus gave himself to people and had the woman at the well draw water for him.
We take pride in our degrees and learning, but Jesus never went to college and it’s said of Him, “How did this man get such learning without having been taught?”
We take pride in our position, but Jesus said, “I am among you as one who serves.”
We take pride in our success, but it’s said of Jesus, “His own did not receive Him or believe on Him. He was despised and rejected.”
We take pride in our self-reliance, but it’s said of Jesus, “He went down to Nazareth and was subject to His parents.”
We take pride in our abilities, but Jesus said, “I can of mine own self do nothing.”
We take pride in our self-will, but Jesus said, “I seek not my own will but the Father’s.” And “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done”
We take pride in our intellect, but Jesus said, “As the Father has taught me, I speak these things.”
We take pride in our resentment and justifiable pride, but Jesus said, “Father, forgive them.”
We take pride in our holiness, but it’s said of Jesus, “He receiveth sinners and eateth with them.”
We take pride in the fact we’re the righteousness of God, but it’s said of Jesus, “He who knew no sin became sin on our behalf in order that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
Oh how many places has pride pierced my life over the years, where I have learned the hard way what Benjamin Whichcote said “none are so empty as those who are full of themselves” The truth is that when we are wrapped up in ourselves we make a pretty small package. The second key to contentment that David reveals is:

● SIMPLICITY
After humility of attitude David goes on to deal with the humility of actions, dealing with both the degree of importance and difficulty. Being careful not to bit off more than we can chew, lest we choke on our arrogance. When David says, “I don’t concern myself with matters too great or too awesome for me to grasp” he is stating a powerful truth, I don’t have to figure everything out. The reality is that there are some things in this life that I don’t understand because they are beyond me, and I don’t have to become consumed with trying to figure it all out. I am not talking about going through life blissfully ignorant or not taking time to think, rather I’m talking about this incessant need to try and figure out God. The reality is that God has gone to great lengths to make himself known to us through His Word, His Son, and the presence of His Spirit in our lives, yet there is still much about God that is cloaked in mystery. There are things that I will never understand, like why he allows certain things to happen in my life. But the great question is not so much what is God doing, but am I content to let Him be in control? In Psalm 139 when David considered how God knew when he sat and when he rose, or how He knew his words before they were on his tongue, and the One who saw him in his mother’s womb when He formed him, who knew all the days He had ordained for him before they came into being, David said of his God, “such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain” There are many things about the person of God, and about the the way God works that we may not understand. We must grapple with what God has revealed and rest in His grace and goodness for that which comes into our lives that we do not understand. The third key to contentment then is:

● SELF CONTROL
David reveals much in his life when he says, “I have calmed and quieted myself, like a weaned child who no longer cries for its mother’s milk. Yes, like a weaned child is my soul within me.” He paints a vivid picture of his soul no longer crying and demanding that his passions be satisfied. This is the picture of maturity, no longer controlled by ones selfish passions, but content simply with Christ. But this contentment involves a painful process, as all parents come to realize. There is a time when the only way for a child to mature is to give up its milk, and that involves crying. You may want to rush in and fulfill their demands, but you know that the only way to get them past this stage involves pain. Eventually their tears are replaced with rest and they are able to move toward maturity, yet only through the pain do they discover peace. Just like a baby David also went through this painful process in order to find contentment of soul. He had to deny his passions, to let his need to be pampered, to have his way, to react in anger, and let the cries of his flesh go unanswered. We will either master our passions or they will master us. Paul calls this process putting to death the deeds of the flesh. We must by the Spirit of God allow our sinful selfish passions go unanswered, for the more we attend to our sinful desires, the stronger their cry will be, and the more they will control us. Our contentment will only increase as we rest in our secure relationship with the Lord. This is the kind of relationship that a weaned child enjoys resting against his mother. The question is where are we at in the weaning stage, are we still in the struggle or have we arrived at the restful phase? Are you in rebellion, throwing temper tantrums demanding to have your needs met. Or are you at that place where you no longer crave what God can do for you as much as you simply crave Him? Instead of depending on the milk you are now depending on Him. We find contentment in life through a humble servants attitude, simplicity of mind, and through self control. Its not an easy process, one which Paul referred to as a process of learning when He said, “I have learned how to be content with whatever I have” ‭Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬. It is a process that paves the road to rest. So are you willing to let God begin this process in you? For pride is the only disease known to man that makes everyone sick except the one who has it!

Psalms 46:10 – “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

Have you ever seen the movie Castaway with Tom Hanks? In the movie, due to a plane crash, Hanks’ character finds himself stranded alone on a deserted island with his only companion being a volleyball he names “Wilson” As we watch him respond to this sudden change of life we see over the hours, days, weeks, and years a change taking place. As his prior life slips away he becomes a very different person. Stripped of his modern conveniences, he discovers that deadlines no longer control his life, that the constant hustle and bustle and endless noise is really pointless. He comes to realize what is really important in life, as he comes to know himself in a much deeper way than he could have with all those things crowding and clouding his reality. What Hanks’ character goes through is, in a sense, what every believer who longs to be a disciple of Christ needs to go through from time to time. To be stranded from society, set apart in the silence of solitude, to soak in the Savior. This is where we discover what is really important in life. Just as Hanks character is stranded, set aside from society, so we too need time to disconnect and disentangle from the constant demands of this world. Yet for may we fight against this idea of solitude, all we can see is being stranded, we miss seeing the redeeming time we could have with the Savior. We have become so tethered to technology, that our lives are now more dependent on data than God. We are more than just attached to technology we are addicted. We can’t wait for the next social hit, that next Facebook like, craving its comments more than Christ. We may fear becoming stripped of our social media and stranded from society just as Hanks did, yet what started out as a disaster for him actually turned into discovery. This call from God to be still comes in the midst of the storm, when everything is crumbling we are called to cling to Christ. Today many of us choose to rely on our own resources, to find comfort in our modern ways of communication, turning to twitter and Facebook more than the Father. May be what we really need is to be marooned with the Messiah, stripped of our self reliant ways. Psalm 46 reminds us that regardless of the chaos, Christ is still in control, Psalm 46: 1-3 “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.” God is really our only hope, and regardless of our circumstances we can be secure only in the Savior. When our world is turned upside down, when what we thought was stable slips away, and our feeble foundations falters and fall, it is then that we discover the refuge of our Father. One of Satan’s traps is to get us so busy and involved in activity that we become so consumed by the trivial that we miss the truth. Satan loves it when we have no time to be still in the presence of God, when all our activity keeps us from the Almighty. Sometimes God must force us to be still, to shake up our lives to the point that our false foundations falter. God’s gift here is the invitation to sit with Him, to stop focusing on our circumstances and clamoring for results but to simply cling to the relationship. When was the last time you sat still and silent in the presence of the Savior? Silence is seldom desired in our society, which values the voice of noise, choosing to fill every moment with sound. We are drowning in the noise of a society consumed with communication, yet having nothing important to say. We are a society of sound clutter. Silence is choosing to abstaining from sound long enough to open our spiritual ears to the still small voice of God. When was the last time you heard the softness of that voice, from the One that speaks in whispers? What if we strained to listen to God as much as we do our social media? It is in silence that we come to know Him better, that we discover the value of His voice. That we discover the depths of His love and the life-changing words that He speaks. Our hearts are whip lashed from one direction to another by the many voices we listen to, and as a result never find true peace. Our hearts are restless until they rest in Jesus, oh what a reward to rest in our relationship with Him. Solitude doesn’t just aid in drawing us closer to God, it helps keep us there. So why does He call us to be still in His presence? First it provides opportunity for reflection. If our time is spent purely in making requests we are not allowing God to reveal His will to us, it become more about our desires than His direction. Being still allows Him to place other people on our hearts. Sure we might have prayer requests about people or situations but God might want to add something or someone to that list, those we may have never considered. But if we are not listening when He speaks we will miss these opportunities. If we don’t learn to be quiet, we won’t be reflecting on what God wants to reveal to us about ourselves. Are you allowing the Holy Spirit to examine your heart and mind, are you listening to God to hear what He wants to change in your life? Reflection leads to revelation. Second being still before The Lord allows us to release our burdens, fears, anxiety and worry to Him. We often live life bottling up our fears, stuffing the stress, its not until we stop and sit with the Savior that we even realize how big our burden bag is. One of the blessings of being quiet before God is that it gives us the opportunity to shut out the screaming world, to not be bothered with anything else. Sitting with the Savior serves to both shut out the monotonous drone of this world, and to sift my heart, filtering out the fear. All of the continuously negative noise, of this world with its worthless words can be released and removed through our time of stillness with God. As we still our hearts before Him, He reminds us of His word that teaches us not to worry, or be anxious and afraid. He can remind us to trust Him that though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging we can depend on Him. God is our strength and we can take refuge in his promises. It is in these moments of stillness, when God quiets my heart, that the grip Satan may have gotten on me through his lies and deceptions can be released. It is God’s truth that breaks the chains of bondage that bind our hearts, it is the sweet reminder that we are redeemed, that I am His child, loved and priceless. Often we forgo being freed, choosing instead to carry the burden and bondage of lies. Yet a lot can be released when we are willing to release our reluctance to be still before Him. Third being still before the Savior replenishes our restless hearts. It is in this quiet place of reflection and release that our hearts can rest. In this time of rest He replenishes and restores our soul. His healing is found in the quiet silence of His presence. Our abundance, and every need is found at His feet. The answers to life’s questions are found in these moments of face to face reflection when it’s just me and Him. That true and pure love we all crave is only found in Christ. Its in the stillness and security of Christ that we discover that we don’t have to work and strive for His love. Today will you respond to His invitation to be still and know that He is God?