Puyallup Elementary Blog

Be Still (Even When)

Our spiritual theme for the school year—Be Still (Even When)—comes from Psalm 46:10 (NIV): “He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.’ ”

We often use stillness to describe something that, at times, can also be in motion. The ocean can storm with waves yet be still on a calm afternoon. The trees in a forest can sway in a storm yet be motionless when there is no wind. Noah Lyles, the fastest man in the world, finds stillness while does static stretching after a race to cool down. Forrest Frank can worship at the top of his lungs, but his voice is still and silent during moments of listening and prayer. Similarly, our lives need this work/rest balance. God created stillness because He knew His creation needed it.

Find time to be physically still

When we take a moment to be still, we become more aware of our surroundings. Take a moment right now to pause and listen to what’s around you. We can be still and listen to the birds outside, the kids playing, the laughter of coworkers, or maybe simply listen to the calm and quiet. We can be still and see that God has created beautiful things. We can admire the colors of paintings on the walls or the blueness of the sky. We can see the beauty in His creation of nature: of butterflies and bees, rivers and mountains. We can be still and admire the beautiful diversity of humanity, people of different cultures and ethnicities, each with individual likes and dislikes, goals, and strengths. Being still allows us to absorb the beauty of this world. God created it all, and all of it is good (Genesis 1).

Find time to be still in our hearts and minds

We can practice stillness in the way we think. Our thoughts get busy and overwhelming, our to-do lists get long, and the urge to get going never ceases. Being still in our mind is an act of letting go of the thoughts we’re white knuckling. The Hebrew translation for “be still” is “harpu,” which comes from “raphah” and means “weakness” or “letting go.” Being still in our minds means recognizing our weaknesses and surrendering our thoughts to the Lord (Proverbs 3:5). Be still in your mind. It’s amazing what the Lord can do when we open our hearts and minds to Him and allow Him to direct our thoughts and actions.

Even when life feels crazy, even when nations rise and fall, even when our thoughts bring us down—Be still. God has all the authority and has already given us victory through Jesus.

As we dive into our spiritual theme this year, let us be intentional to explore how we can think more like Jesus, love more like Jesus, and act more like Jesus. In September, we get to focus on being still in our minds because God is exalted! He is exalted as King of Kings even when nations rise and fall (Exodus 12:31-42, Revelation 19:11-16). As we embark on a new school year, remember that “the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9, NIV). In every classroom, gym, field, and space at CCS, God is guiding and protecting us, and He is exalted.

At Cascade Christian, our planning team uses a spiritual theme matrix to intentionally integrate the spiritual theme throughout the school year. You can view the matrix here: Spiritual Theme Matrix - District - Cascade Christian Schools. Additionally, our teachers use integration guides based off our spiritual theme to immerse lessons in a biblical worldview. We are looking forward to the school year ahead. Go, Cougs!

Sources:  

Psalm 46:10 Hebrew Text Analysis (biblehub.com)  

"Be Still" doesn't mean what you think it does... - Inspired to Faith  

What does it mean to be still and know that I am God? | GotQuestions.org