Remain Calm in the Shaking

Last Sunday, I was watching my church’s service online and while the chairperson was praying suddenly there was an earthquake. He was quite composed and said, “Remain calm, look for the exits, remain calm, remain calm.” I was surprised how he spoke. Then I heard it. The rumbling had reached me over 60 miles away from the church and it was followed by the shaking.  But I remained calm and went to ask the others in the house if they felt it.  They didn’t. The confident cool-headed response to the earthquake by the chairperson not only alerted me to what was happening, but it also reassured me. I went back to view the video, and he asked after if he looked calm and then again told the congregation to remain calm and he prayed, “Lord, we thank you that it is You who is in control here. We thank you!” Then he went on to tell the attendees to give the Lord thanks. After, he went on to say, “God is good all the time. That is not cliché. God is good!”

God sure is good. But in times of shaking, whether from an earthquake, financial crashes on the stock markets, or from missiles exploding around us, we might forget as fear takes over. I watched a news interview of a young lady from Jamaica who lives in Dubai about the city being under attack by drones and missiles. She admitted that she had shed a few tears as she had never experienced anything like those explosions before, but then she said that she turned to her faith and started praying. It was clear that she was strengthened by this. So, in these days of many types of shaking, whether it be wars or otherwise, we should remain calm and put our focus on Jesus.

"And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows". Matthew 24:6-8

Jesus said this to His disciples two thousand years ago, and it seems to be happening now. But we should not be troubled. It is difficult however, when you have missiles coming at you and your family and you have no underground bunker to go to for safety. This is the reality for many people in the Middle East right now. And this is why it is so important for us to have God as our refuge no matter what is happening.

My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory; The rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah Psalm 62:5-8

Selah is a Hebrew word that signifies a musical interlude, which is a time to pause, rest or reflect. It is imperative that we pause and take a rest to reflect on Scriptures like these so that we understand that our hope should not be in man or world systems, but our Almighty God alone, who is above all else. Man cannot do for us what God can do. He is fully in control. He is our Saviour, and our ever-present help in times of trouble. And these are truly troubled times. But despite this, we can give thanks to our good God even when the news is horrible coming from many sources with different perspectives. We sometimes don’t know who to believe because truth seems to be fluid these days as people have developed a knack for adapting their truth to what they want their reality to be. There no longer seems to be absolute truth for a majority of people. But the fact still remains that God never changes. He is the same yesterday, today and forever more. Moreover, Jesus is the truth, the way and the life. When we are anchored in this truth, we will not be moved when the shaking comes. 

Let us remain calm in the shaking and keep our eyes fixed on our Heavenly Father. Let us also help people to be calm and point them to Jesus who is with us. I will end with a segment from Charles Spurgeon’s devotion:

Dost thou not hear His voice? Even in the valley of the shadow of death He says, "Fear not, I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy God." Remember that noble speech of Caesar: "Fear not, thou carriest Caesar and all his fortune." Fear not, Christian; Jesus is with thee. In all thy fiery trials, His presence is both thy comfort and safety. He will never leave one whom He has chosen for His own. "Fear not, for I am with thee," is His sure word of promise to His chosen ones in the "furnace of affliction."