How to Enter the Place of Stillness
Be merciful to me, God, be merciful to me, for my soul takes refuge in you. Yes, in the shadow of your wings, I will take refuge, until disaster has passed. — Psalms 57:1
Let us therefore draw near with boldness to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy, and may find grace for help in time of need. — Hebrews 4:16
Author
Dr. Roberto Miranda
Summary: To enter into stillness and cultivate God’s peace, we must prepare before a crisis through daily prayer and meditation. During trials, let us pray more, not less: prayer calms panic and turns our gaze toward God’s promises. Memorizing the Word, especially passages about power and victory, will bring us comfort and strength when the struggle comes. Let us wait patiently without giving up the fight too soon. God has His own timing and purposes: sometimes He allows or initiates a trial to transform us; at other times, He does not immediately remove an attack from the Enemy because it, too, can lead us to seek Him and depend on Him more.
How can one enter that zone of powerful stillness we have spoken about in recent meditations? How can we cultivate the peace of God in the midst of the storm?
First, do not wait for a trial or crisis to come before turning your eyes to the Lord. Even in ordinary times, cultivate a healthy devotional life. Just as Jehoshaphat built fortresses in various cities of his nation as a precaution at the beginning of his reign, build up spiritual reserves and strengthen yourself spiritually and emotionally through daily prayer and meditation, so that when the trial comes, you will be in good spiritual shape to resist and overcome.
Second, when you enter a time of trial, remember that you must pray more, not less! In difficult times, the natural tendency is to go into crisis mode and frantic activity, neglecting spiritual disciplines. It should be just the opposite. Prayer focuses you on the eternal, calms your panic, takes your eyes off your circumstances, and helps you fix your gaze on the divine promises. This, in turn, brings peace to your soul and fills you with hope.
Third, memorize the Word of God, particularly verses about power and victory. When the trial comes, those powerful passages will become a source of vitality and comfort for your soul. As you repeat it, the Word of God will speak within you and strengthen your emotions. Over the years, I have discovered that the psalms and passages I have learned by heart have become valuable allies in my battles. In times of anxiety and struggle, reciting them softly has had a calming effect within me. They have been like projectiles I have been able to hurl at the foreheads of giants, a prophetic word that has activated the spiritual content of those passages on my behalf. That is why it is important to memorize the Word of God. When war comes, we will discover that the Word is already within us, woven into our sensibilities, its nutrients spread throughout our entire being.
Finally, wait patiently for the salvation of the Lord. Do not abandon the fight prematurely! God has His own timing, His own processes, and His own purposes for each of His children. As we have seen, a trial does not come only from the Enemy. At times, God permits it, or actively initiates it, to strengthen us, prune us, break us, and make us more like Christ. At other times, as we have already discussed, God does not take the trial away immediately, even though it was initiated by the Enemy, because despite its diabolical origin, it has a positive effect on us: it humbles us, turns us more toward prayer and the pursuit of God, and compels us to depend more on Him. Remember that “all things work together for good for those who love God.”
Even the Enemy’s attacks, if we go through them holding God’s hand, will bring blessing to our souls. The writer of Hebrews encourages us not to leave the race prematurely, but to stay in it to the end, until God has revealed His full purpose in the mysterious processes of our spiritual journey: “Do not cast away your confidence, then, for it has a great reward; for you need patience, so that, having done the will of God, you may obtain the promise” (Heb 12: 35, 36).