Friday, June 19, 2026

Opening Scripture

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

Opening Prayer

Gracious Heavenly Father, thank you for rest and the promise of a new day. I praise You for Your loving kindness, Your thoughtful provision, and Your comforting presence. Help my hope and security to be in You today, not in what I do, or what I have, or what others think. May Your Spirit guide me in the way I should go. Help me to appreciate Your blessings and see You at work around me. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Daily Bible Reading

Psalm 46

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. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day.

Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Come and see what the Lord has done, the desolations he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Reflection  

The introduction to Psalm 46 says, “For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah.” The Sons of Korah were a Levitical guild (Levites from the family of Kohath) that served as temple musicians, comparable to our modern worship ministers. We hear about them in 2 Chronicles 20:19, “Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.”

Psalm 46 celebrates God’s miraculous deliverance from an overwhelming threat, perhaps the Assyrian siege of Jerusalem during King Hezekiah’s reign.

“Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him. He held fast to the Lord and did not stop following him; he kept the commands the Lord had given Moses. And the Lord was with him; he was successful in whatever he undertook. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him” (2 Kings 18:5-7).

The Assyrians had already functioned as God’s punishment for the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Though God had provided for His people and warned them, “they would not listen and were as stiff-necked as their ancestors, who did not trust in the Lord their God. They rejected his decrees and the covenant he had made with their ancestors and the statutes he had warned them to keep. They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless. They imitated the nations around them although the Lord had ordered them, ‘Do not do as they do.’”

The Assyrians conquered the Northern Kingdom, and the people of Israel were taken from their homeland into exile. Then the Assyrians brought people from other nations and settled them in the towns of Samaria to replace the Israelites.

When the Southern Kingdom of Judah was faced with a similar threat, King Hezekiah “tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into the temple of the LORD.” The prophet Isaiah told Hezekiah, “Do not be afraid!”

Hezekiah prayed, “It is true, LORD, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste these nations and their lands. They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands. Now, LORD our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, LORD, are God” (2 Kings 19:17-19).

That night, an angel of the LORD went out and put to death 185,000 Assyrian soldiers. The next morning, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, broke camp and led his remaining troops back to Nineveh. As today’s passage testifies, “The LORD makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.”

Psalm 46 serves as a beautiful and timeless reminder of the constant presence and unmatched strength of God. It clearly portrays the Lord as our steadfast refuge and an ever-present help in times of trouble. This psalm urges us to claim divine peace amidst the chaos of the world, drawing our attention to God’s power over nature and nations. God is sovereign, and His purpose always prevails!

The psalmist describes a faith in God that transcends circumstances. Because God is our sanctuary, we choose not to fear even when things are falling apart all around us. When God is our refuge, we need not fear “though the mountains fall into the sea.”

Flourishing Habit

Flourishing Christians

Psalm 46:10 expresses a challenging command for many of us: “Be still, and know that I am God.” The Hebrew word “harpū” is an imperative (command) derived from the root “raphah” which means “let go” or “cease striving.” It implies relaxing your grip and literally letting your hands fall to your side.

It is a divine command to surrender our anxiety, pride, and self-sufficiency – to stop “striving” – by recognizing God’s sovereignty and ability. That verb “be still” points to a quieted heart that trusts God’s goodness and grace, finding ultimate security in His unfailing love.

Is God truly your refuge and strength in times of trouble?

Are your hope and security in Him more than what you do, or what you have, or what others think of you?

When do you make time to “be still” and experience God in solitude and silence?

When do you choose to “be still” and trust God rather than struggling and striving?

Remember: Nothing changes until something changes!