“God wants us to drop our arms.”

A thought by Brant Hansen (2015-04-14) from his book, Unoffendable: How Just One Change Can Make All of Life Better (p. 59). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title of the book to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

But we have to carry the world and protect the world and conquer the world, don’t we?

Here’s what Brant says, “We’re told, in Psalm 46: 10, to ‘be still,’ or to ‘cease striving’ (NASB), and know that He is God. Some people are familiar with this verse but not the larger context, which is that of someone looking over the remains of a battlefield. The original Hebrew is suggestive of stopping the fight, letting go, and relaxing. God wants us to drop our arms. No more defensiveness. No more taking things personally. He’ll handle it. Really.”

He goes on, “Trust Him. Rest. Quit thinking it’s up to you to police people, and that God needs you to ‘take a stand.’ God ‘needs’ nothing.” We need Him. He doesn’t need us. Yes, He loves us and yes, He uses us but He doesn’t need us.

Then Brant says, “Quit trying to parent the whole world. Quit offering advice when exactly zero people asked for it. Quit being shocked when people don’t share your morality. Quit serving as judge and jury, in your own mind, of that person who just cut you off in traffic. Quit thinking you need to ‘discern’ what others’ motives are. And quit rehearsing in your mind what that other person did to you. It’s all so exhausting.” It really is.

Remember what Psalm 46: 10 says, “Be still and know that I am God” (NLT). We are not God. God is. Trust Him. Rest.

So how is your conquering the world going?

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