“Jesus commands us in Mark 12:30, ‘Love the Lord your God … with all your mind’—our minds are connected to our affections. When we limit mindless entertainment and replace it with deeper content and conversations, our relationship with God and others will benefit.” - TGC
Lately, the words of this classic hymn have echoed in my head. The stirring melody by Jean Sebelius has become the theme music for my summer. Be Still My Soul.
As Chris Anderson argues in his book, Theology That Sticks,* the great hymns of the faith often remind us of the truths of God’s Word far longer than any book we read or sermon we hear. Let’s walk through the lyrics of Be Still My Soul and discover what Scripture passages German hymnwriter Kathrina von Schlegel (and translator Jane Borthwick) reference throughout this hymn.
“Isaiah records one of God’s invitations to be quiet: ‘Thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength’” (Isaiah 30:15).” - Desiring God
“If Jesus found it necessary to withdraw from the crowds to pray, how much more do we need those times of silence and solitude with the Lord.” - McKnight
Reposted from Rooted Thinking.
You feel like you’ve done your duty, but something is missing. The intimacy you once experienced with God has fled. You feel spiritually dry. What’s wrong with your spiritual life?
“Why are these people so slow?” I fumed as I weaved my way between shoppers at Walmart. I had just returned to the U.S. from urban Asia where the throttle of the pace of life is always wide open. Go! Go! Go! My to-do list burned a hole in my pocket. There was no time to waste. No time to sit still. No time to be quiet.
“I have discovered that all the unhappiness of men arises from one single fact, that they cannot stay quietly in their own chamber. A man who has enough to live on, if he knew how to stay with pleasure at home, would not leave it to go to sea or to besiege a town….
“Modernity has brought many blessings, but…. In a culture that so fervently strives after performance and hustle at the cost of all else, could it be that we may simply need more silence and more slowness?” - Acton
