3 Ways We Can Stop Fighting & Know He Is God ~ Candidly Christian

“Be still and know He is God” easier said than done, #amiright?

Confession time: As many of you have seen, during the time of social distancing, there have been various “puzzles” circulating on social media. And like many of you, I would try really hard to get the right answer.

Usually I would get the answer wrong, and I would get a direct message from the person who posted the puzzle with the correct answer. Then, when I saw someone else post the same puzzle, I would try to look smart and share the right answer…

I did that to a puzzle Heather posted. And if I am really honest, even though I knew the answer, I actually didn’t know how that answer actually came to be. Like I tried to write it out on paper, and failed. So, I kind of felt a little guilty, and I ended up sharing that after I was told I gave the right answer.

Another confession: That wasn’t the only time in my life, that I wanted to look good.

How My Pride Led to My Shame

When I wasn’t following Christ, I went to a healing service with my parents. This is about 13 years ago now. It was actually the second healing service that I had gone to. The first one, God met me in my pain. He took the burden of my sin off my shoulders. But that wasn’t enough for me to actually turn away from my sin right then.

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The second time, God met me in my façade.

I was there, in a room full of people wanting healing, and all I wanted was for people to believe I was a good Christian girl. I sang all the songs, and bowed my head in prayer with everyone else, and even proudly shared that last time God had given me so much freedom from the weight of my sin. I proudly went to get a blessing from the pastor, thinking that this time, I would get the nice little blessing and go on with my night.

Oh dear friends, what happened next was like shameful. The pastor looked at me, and instead of the wonderful blessing he was going to give me, he said “you tell everyone what they want to hear.”

Ouch. Embarrassment.

Then, he put his hand over my heart, as I willed myself not to fall over as so many others were. Oh my gosh, can you see how prideful I was? So, he kept praying, and eventually I couldn’t stand anymore and fell over. And then, he sprinkled holy water on me.

Yes, it came to that. That is how bad the condition of my heart was.

I Didn’t Know Jesus

I was a fraud. And God saw right through it. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the pastor saw right through my façade as well. And of course, I passed blame, like he had a bad day, and had taken it out on me! I was gypped of the amazing blessing similar to the one I had gotten last time. He was the one who told people what they wanted to hear, but not I. I knew the right answer, and I knew all the stories, and songs about Jesus. I was good.

But that didn’t mean I actually knew Jesus.

The verse “be still, and know that I am God”, is coming to my mind right now. And there are many things that we can do to get to know God. Like read our Bibles, pray, sing songs of praise, go to church. But just because we do these things, doesn’t mean that we actually know God.

One of my favorite translations of the verse Psalm 46:10 says “stop fighting, and know that I am God.”

3 Ways to stop fighting and know He is God

Be Still and Know He is God

Even though I was doing technically what a Christian should do, I was still fighting God. I didn’t want to submit to the will He had for my life. I was holding onto things that kept me from really knowing who He was.

What keeps you from knowing He is God? I have a list that I can easily spit out right now for you. Today the things that top my list would be fear, uncertainty, and insecurity.

So what can we do in our lives that will get us to stop fighting, so that we can know that He is God in the deepest way possible?

3 Ways to Stop Fighting & Know Him More

1.) Stop Fighting to Be Right

We give up our right to be right. We pray that He removes the pride from our hearts. We ask that He humbles us to a place where we know that we need Him, more than we need the things that keep us fighting Him.

2.) Stop Fighting to Be in the Spotlight

We look at the life of Jesus, and use that as an example of how to live our lives. He always pointed to the Father.

3.) Stop Fighting to Have it Your Way

We submit our ways, to His ways. We let our prayer be completed with “nevertheless, Your will be done.” That is one of my favorite things that Jesus does. He was praying in the garden before He was arrested, and He tells His Father, if at all possible, take this cup from me, but nevertheless Your will be done.

Join the Conversation

Have there been moments in your life that God has used extreme measures to get your attention? Would you share it with us, and maybe what you have done in your life to stop fighting so you can know He is God?

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If you liked this blog post, you’ll also love our anthology, Candid Conversations. While each story shares a unique perspective, the prevailing theme is that while we all struggle, there is hope to be found in Jesus. Get your copy from Amazon or click here to learn more.