I Have Calmed My Heart and Quieted My Soul

Psalm 131:1 O Lord, my heart is not proud, nor my eyes haughty; Nor do I involve myself in great matters, Or in things too difficult for me. 2 Surely I have composed and quieted my soul; Like a weaned child rests against his mother, My soul is like a weaned child within me. 3 O Israel, hope in the Lord From this time forth and forever.

There are some days! Some days when the windmills of my mind become buzz saws. Some days when rest seems illusive and sleep will not come. The cause can be from events in my life, or, as was the case last week, the catalyst can be the experiences of my friends. In either case, it's personal.

What I have found is that God wants us to have peace, and He wants us to enjoy His rest. He provides for our peace and rest, but it is our responsibility to enter into it.

We have peace in two ways: Peace with God (Romans 5:1); and, The peace of God (Philippians 4:7, 9). Peace with God is the foundation everything else is built on. For, while we are at odds with God, there can be no peace of mind and no rest for the weary.

Peace with God comes from belief. Belief that we have missed His mark, and as such, we are lost. We, just like Adam and Eve, are outside of fellowship with Him, and there's nothing we can do about it but believe in the work of His Son, who provides for our redemption through His righteousness. Like Romans 5:1 says, because of faith, I have been justified. That is, through faith in the work of the Righteous One, Jesus the Christ, I have been made righteous, just as if I had never sinned.

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

Believe I do, peace with God I have.

Philippians 4 is my goto chapter. I go to it in times of trouble, in times when I need a pep-talk. Here we can see the secret of enjoying the peace of God.

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! 5 Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Here we begin to see that enjoying the peace of God is an activity. We must rejoice. We must have a gentle spirit. We must not be anxious, but depend on God and be thankful. Again faith is the key to enjoying God's peace. We are to depend on Him. He is near.

But what about rest? Jesus tells us:

Matthew 11:28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Yes we have rest, as we come to Him. This leads us right back to the words of David in Psalm 131. Here we see the king of Israel coming to that point when his windmills had become buzz saws. Pondering things too difficult for even the king. We see him coming to his Lord, like a weaned child returning to lean on his mother, stilling his heart and quieting his soul in the comfort he finds there. No wonder his desire is for his people to share in the hope that sustains him.

May each of you find that peace and rest that sustains me.