Be Still And Know That I Am God (Video) — Shane Idleman

The Stillness Killers: Busyness and Excessive Activity

And not rush ahead. And the Bible is clear that those who wait upon the Lord. There's something about stillness that will settle us, settle our soul, and we can hear more clearly from God. Because what's the opposite of stillness?

Or not being still. Being busy. And so I want to talk about that right before I get into the actual Psalm 46. I actually will get into Psalm 47 today. Top seven stillness killers. Let's see how you're doing on this list.

Too much activity. Too much activity. And remember, you've heard me say many times that a good thing isn't always a God thing. And the way God works in a lot of our lives is to make us prioritize things and focus on the things that are the main things and not be drawn away by so many other things.

It's where the enemy uses busyness. And we can get so busy doing even good things. And I've talked about this before, but when they interviewed a lot of Christian leaders over the years who have fallen into sexual immorality or fallen out of the ministry, nine times out of ten, it was because they were too busy.

Busy doing good things. Because if you're busy ministering to others, you're busy running here and going there and busy. I've got books. One book is Leading on Empty. And they're mentioning different stories about pastors and burnout because they're just busy doing all the things, but they lose that intimacy with God.

And it can rob you of that stillness with the Lord. And that's where you hear the voice of God. It's in that waiting time. It's in that calm. It's in the, not the fire and the thunder and the earthquake, but in that still, small voice that follows.

And because there's too much activity, it requires bringing our activity into a calendar, so to speak, and removing things that are just, you can tell when you're being pulled in too many different directions.

And there's different people that listen to this, but parents know exactly what I'm talking about. The more kids you add to that, baseball, little league, soccer, basketball, music lessons, this event, this graduation, and some of those things, obviously, you can't give up, but that's why you've got to even be more strategic with your time.

And be careful. Here's what I try to do. Make sure my activity with God outweighs the activity serving God. If I'm losing that edge in the morning, if I'm being too busy for prayer and too busy to really study for sermons and intimacy with God, and that's one reason why I love trying to go to bed at a decent hour, you know, by nine, is so I can get up in the morning and really have that time, because if I don't get that time, it's probably not going to happen later on.

And I don't know about many of you, but I can't just sit down at lunchtime when it's bright out and everything's busy and have that same type of feeling as when it's four in the morning and dark and quiet, and just that time with God is incredible.

Poor Priorities and Draining Relationships

And then number two, wrongly timed activity. That goes back to prioritizing. This will kill the stillness before God, is the right thing at the wrong time. Number three, busy. If you're busy with busy bodies, busy with busy bodies, that will rob you of that intimacy with God, that stillness with the Lord.

I don't need to go into a lot of detail, but you know who they are. Do they build you up or pull you down? You never leave the presence of someone, maybe go out to lunch or do something, you're like, why did I, that just, man, that wore me out.

And that's actually why we try to, as pastors, even try to put some type of parameters on counseling appointments, because they're needed, but they're very demanding. And they can just pull a lot out of you, and really, I don't want to use the word draining, but that's what it is.

Things either drain you, or they build you back up, they charge you up like a battery. And you have to find those things that charge you up, because what charged you up might drain me, or vice versa. And you know how you feel afterwards.

Anxiety, Fear, and Besetting Sin

Number four, anxiety, worry, and fear. There's a restlessness, and that's why you see this is increasing at an alarming rate, especially in young adults. There's a lot of worry and restlessness and anxiety, and it robs us of that stillness with God.

And of course, number five, we can all attest to this, sit still, seeking the heart of God when you have besetting sin going on. Unrepentant sin and things you know you shouldn't be doing, but you're doing it, and you've caved in, and maybe you're looking at things too much, and there's something that you're not dealt with, and it's a besetting sin.

It's hard to spend time with God. Because what happens? Either the sin dies, or that time with God dies. Be killing sin, or sin be killing you. I think it was John Owen who said that, a famous Puritan.

And so the beautiful thing about that though is that can change tonight with repentance. Lord, please deliver me from this. I repent. I leave it here at the altar tonight. I don't want to keep dealing with this critical spirit or this arrogance or this lust.

I mean, boy, the list is long, is it not, in the Christian community. Anything the flesh wants to go after can be a stronghold in the life. That's why Paul says the works of the flesh. And we like to judge people on their work, but not look in the mirror.

I won't go there. Rushing God's activity. Rushing God's activity. Hurry up, God. Hurry up. I've even found myself recently trying to just skip through the Bible a little quicker because I've got to get my chapter and verses in for the day.

Get through this Bible once a year, once a year, once a year, once a year, once a year, and checkmark for 22 years. And I realize, hey, I'm not really absorbing this like I should. Let me just not worry about that timeline.

And realizing that trying to rush through, or if God wants you to do something, trying to rush through those things, it can really rob you of the stillness. Rush through prayer. That just sounds funny, doesn't it?

Hey, come tonight, we're going to rush through prayer. We'll be out of here in no time. We're going to have a prayer meeting, but we're going to rush through. And then little desire for God. It will kill that intimacy, that stillness with your Creator.

When there's little desire for God, and this one's a little tricky because you can't just manufacture it. You know, you can't just say, okay, yeah, I feel that way, Shane. The Bible's boring. I'm dead tonight.

I've drifted. And you can't just turn on a switch like the lights necessarily. It's their pursuit. There's a portion of you that needs to seek God and repent and get back on the right track, and the more you seek Him, the more you find Him.

The more you find Him, the more you want to seek Him. So that will rob stillness because your passion for God is directly related to spending time with Him. And then we're going to get into the psalm that talks about this.

Psalm 46: God as Refuge, Strength, and Present Help

Psalm 46. God is our refuge and strength. And I did something a little bit different tonight. I'm going to just show you how I go through the Scriptures without chapter and verse. The Bible didn't have chapter and verse when it was written.

It's more of a continual flow. And how do you meditate on the Word of God? How do you let the Scriptures speak to you? God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. And so it's a great reminder that a refuge would be a place to run to and strength is something to take strength in.

So God is something I run to rather than the addiction, rather than the situation, rather than the relationship that you shouldn't be in. You run to God instead. And it is a choice, isn't it? Anytime we give in to something, we're giving in to a desire one way or the other.

A godly desire or the sinful desire when we deal with temptation. He is a very present help in trouble. The words there, very present. Not just present, but He's a very present help in trouble. And that's why you've heard me say many times before, you can call on Him at 2 in the morning.

3 .30 in the morning. Wherever you're at, you can call on Him and say, Lord, help! You're a very present help in time of trouble. You are my strength. And because of this, therefore, we will not fear, even though the earth may be removed, and though the mountains may be carried into the midst of the sea, though its waters roar and are troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling.

No matter what happens, basically, we will not fear. But where does fear come in? It comes when we don't take our thoughts captive. And I don't remember the exact numbers, but the percentage is pretty low that the stuff we worry about actually happens.

I mean, I want to say like 5%. And so we spend all this time worrying about things that never really happen. And even if they do happen, remember I think I said it Sunday, the God of the mountains is still the God of the valleys.

Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. God holds me with His right hand. He puts me back on stable ground. Sometimes He doesn't take me around the storm. Sometimes He carries me through the storm.

Very present help in time of trouble. It's such graphic language here. The earth be moved. The mountains be carried into the sea. No matter what happens, the Lord is with me. There is a river. There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God.

And river and water is often a reflection of God's Spirit moving among His people in a time of refreshment from the presence of the Lord. Contrast that with the dry, barren desert. So he says here, there is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of His tabernacle of the Most High.

God is in the midst of her. He shall not be moved. God shall help her. Just at the break of dawn. It's interesting on that language, just at the break of dawn, it gives us this image of God's waiting until the last moment sometimes.

You start difficult seasons at night, but at the break of dawn, there comes my help. There comes my help. And I don't know why God doesn't pull us out earlier. Sometimes He waits until that last minute.

Sometimes He takes us through the difficulty because then we come out of the fire a little bit burned, a little bit smelling like smoke, but now I know Him as my Deliverer. Had He not brought me out too early, I might not have known Him as my Deliverer.

Had I not been sick, I might not know Him as my Healer. Had the bank not wanted to try to come back and take back the house, I might know Him as my Provider. And that's why they had all those words for God.

Jehovah Nissi, Jehovah Sikhenu, Jehovah Rafi. My Provider. My strength. My banner. Who will go before me and fight? The Lord will. God shall help her. The nations raged. And that has not changed. Now, 3 ,000 years later from when this was written, the nations still rage.

The kingdoms were moved. God utters His voice and the earth even melted. You have to remember that about God. There's so much power when He speaks a word. When He decrees a thing. A good reminder of who can stop God Almighty.

The Lord of Hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge and strength. The Lord of Hosts. The Lord of Hosts. How many just show of hands knows what that means? Donna, you're just not putting your hand up.

There we go. Lord of Hosts. It's actually a very powerful word. The Lord of the armies of heaven. I don't know how that works exactly, but we know that when Jesus returns, out of His mouth goes the sword, that He's striking the nation.

He's ruling the nations with the rod of iron. And the armies follow after Him. The armies of heaven. Now, one angel is bad. Nobody can stop the death angel that went over Egypt that slew 185 ,000 Assyrians.

One angel. Can you imagine the armies of heaven? Who is going to stand against God? And that's why I love when the prophets said, this man is fearful, God, would You open his eyes? And he looked around and they could see the armies of heaven up on the hills.

Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. And sometimes you've got to say, God, open my spiritual eyes. I see all kinds of deception around me. I see all kinds of confusion and chaos, but Lord of Hosts, the Lord of the angel armies, come and deliver Your people.

The God of Jacob is our refuge. Come behold the works of the Lord. It's an invitation. That's why these psalms, sometimes I can't get through them quickly anymore. You get out the highlighter and just ponder that.

Beholding God's Works and Seeking Him in Desperation

There's an invitation. He's saying, come and behold the works of the Lord. There's always an invitation often throughout Scripture. Come and taste and see that God is good. Come and behold. Fix your eyes on the glory of God and let that penetrate deep down in your heart.

Behold the works of the Lord who has made desolations in the earth. He makes wars to cease. He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two. He burns the chariot in fire. Basically, God is awesome in inviting people, come and behold the works of the Lord.

And if I could, I would love to just throw that out to you. Come and behold how good God is. Fix your eyes upon Him again. Sometimes we have to wake up in our spiritual slumber and our spiritual apathy.

And get fervency again. Get fervency. I'm talking about that this Sunday in Texas. And many of you have heard it before, but just a reminder of the dire need to get desperate. Do you know desperate Christians move the hand of God?

Desperate Christians call down heaven. Desperate Christians might meet every night of the week because they're hungry for God. A friend of mine pastors a church in Lancaster, I just went last night, they're meeting every single night for 40 days.

Praying and fasting. There's a desperation. God, you don't see Him move as often in churches that aren't desperate. Or in the lives, when I wasn't desperate, I was going through the motions. But there's always a call of desperation, of seeking God until you find Him.

Of looking in the dark, as it were, until you cling on to the cross and gazing your eyes upon Jesus. And Lord, I don't even feel it. I don't feel like coming to church. I don't feel like getting to that altar.

I don't feel like worshiping. But Lord, my flesh is going to tag along. No more listening to the desires of the flesh. I want the Spirit of God to move me. I want to be desperate for more of God. Isn't that true?

Desperate people do desperate things. Where's the desperation? Where's the crying and the yearning and the travail? All these terms that are thoroughly biblical. Esther got a little desperate when her people were going to be annihilated.

If I perish, I perish, but I've been called for such a time as this. Throughout all these Bible verses and stories we love, go back and just think about how many of those people were desperate. David was desperate.

He had a zeal for God when he fought Goliath. Nahum, Habakkuk, the prophets were desperate. Jeremiah, the weeping prophet. Isaiah saw the Lord high and lift up. There was a desperation. Paul was so desperate to fulfill his calling.

Peter, there's a desperate call. The Lord of Hosts is with us. The Lord of Hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our strength. What about if you had these types of verses posted on your house? Maybe a big blow up on your TV instead of the negative news.

“Be Still and Know”: Trusting God's Presence

And just a reminder, the Lord of Hosts is with us. Be still and know that I am God. That's where the message came from. Be still and know that I am God. And I have found that when I'm rushing and worrying, I forget who God is.

It's when I stop and be still and know that God has my kids in the palm of His hand. Some of you, your grandkids in the palm of His hand. Lord, let me still my heart. It's like backtracking and getting away from the filth and the junk and the negativity and just being still before God.

But it doesn't just say that. It says be still and know. Know that I am God. There's a defining moment that takes place. And then I believe it goes right into Psalm 47. So is he talking about literally clapping your hands?

Maybe. Because look at the context. There's an excitement. Is it okay to get excited in church? Oh, clap your hands. All you people, shout to God with the voice of triumph. Oh, there it goes. Quiet little worship out the window for a season.

And I believe that's why there's different types of styles. There's what they call praise and worship. And there's also lower key worship that demands more of a pressing in. But then there are times. That's why there's different songs, different lyrics, different artists writing different things.

Clap your hands, all you people. Make a joyful noise unto the Lord. Shout to God with the voice of triumph. Why is that? Because out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. Now, we don't want to be fake, but there's something exciting about it.

And that's why I love when Brant does that song about the chariots will burn with fire. God just breaks the bow. He cuts the spear in pieces. What kind of army can stand before God? He takes the very weapons that they want to use against His people, and He just breaks the bow.

And there's a voice of triumph. There's a voice of triumph. And you'll see throughout the Old Testament how many times they heard the voice of the people. It sounds as thunder. The Philistines would say, what is that?

That is the voice of the children of Israel exalting their God. And the ground shook. And they went around Jericho and the walls came down. There was a voice of triumph calling out, our God is our God and He will deliver us.

Out of the depths of my soul, my heart will cry out. Clap your hands, all you people. Wake up from the slumber that you are in and rejoice. Shout to God with the voice of triumph. For the Lord Most High is awesome.

Awesome. He is a great king over all the earth. He will subdue the people under us and the nations under our feet. That's what I take a lot of courage in that the enemy will eventually be under our feet.

Maybe not right now. We might be speaking Chinese or Russian the way things are going. But eventually, eventually, the enemies will be put as a footstool underneath the Son's foot, Jesus Christ. He subdues the people underneath us and the nations under our feet.

He will choose our inheritance for us. In other words, God's sovereignty will prevail. Anybody else thank God for God's sovereignty? Oh, can you imagine if the Bible said, and then God wasn't sure what was going to happen.

He wasn't sure what hand He was going to play. He was waiting to see what happened and then He would react. No, He said sovereign. He chooses our inheritance for us. And wherever God puts you is the best spot for you.

Now, it might not be what you want or what I want, but it is the best spot where God wants us to be. So He chooses the inheritance and the excellence of Jacob whom He loves. Again, talking about His sovereignty.

Psalm 47: God's Sovereignty and Exaltation

Then it goes on to say, God has gone up with a shout. God has gone up with a shout. The Lord with the sound of a trumpet. So because of all this reminder of who God is and what He has done and He's still on the throne, He's still in sovereign control, He puts the enemies under our feet, He controls the affairs of men, because of that, shout to the Lord.

Shout like a trumpet. The trumpets are loud. The trumpets are preparing a person for battle. Sing praises to God. Sing praises. He mentions it again. Sing praises to our King. Sing praise. How many times?

Four times there. Sing praises. And those words are a joyful expression of how good God is. It's okay to sing praises to our King, for God is the King of all the earth. Sing praises with understanding.

God reigns over the nations. God sits on His holy throne. The princes of the people have gathered together, the people of the God of Abraham, for the shields of the earth belong to God and He is greatly to be exalted.

That shields of the earth could just mean those who govern and lead the land. And he's making a point here. In case we forget, God reigns over all the nations. No matter what nation it is, God is holy.

He sits on His throne. Even the princes of the people, they've gathered together under His banner, under His leadership. He is greatly to be exalted. And so I didn't want to end with the negativity of the seven negative things of stillness.

I want to encourage you with the seven benefits of being still before God. Number one, confidence grows remembering God's faithfulness. So the more you stay in His Word, get some Scriptures written down, get some things committed to memory, I don't know how it works, but the more you wait before God and you just still your mind and you take your thoughts captive, get your thoughts off of all the things that are not edifying, all the things that are distracting, all the things that are pulling you down, and as you do that, your confidence grows because you remember God's faithfulness.

Confidence Grows Through Remembering God's Faithfulness

Most of you, if you've done this before, you know what I'm talking about, but if you've spent some time in God's Word and praying, do you come out of that feeling worse? Maybe once in a while, I don't know.

Like, oh, I'll never measure up, right? Sometimes you may be convicted. And you don't have to measure up. It's not about measuring up. It's about spending that time with God. But often we come out of that exhilarated and in a better mood.

And that's why I often say, now I'm ready to be a husband or to be a father or to be the pastor because it starts with that stillness before God and that confidence grows. And then number two, your spiritual strength increases.

Spiritual Strength and a Deeper Relationship with God

Your spiritual strength increases. Do you feel weak spiritually tonight? If you feel weak spiritually, you can change that. It's like spiritual muscles are being built. Same thing with physical muscles.

They are usually built because of stress that the body's adapting to the workload it's not familiar with. So spiritually speaking, as we press in and we wait on God, that's how you become stronger spiritually.

You actually become weaker spiritually the more you get frantic and too busy and no time for God and I'm doing all this other stuff and I've got all these things going on. It's kind of chaotic. Our home is like a volcano ready to erupt and I've got all these things going on.

I can never be still before God. Your spiritual muscle will decline. And then number three, another benefit of being still before God is it deepens our relationship with God. Who needs that tonight? Wow.

All of us. There's a deeper relationship with God. Why? Because you're spending time with Him. And then number four, it fortifies our soul against sin. The greatest weapon we have against sin is the fullness of the Spirit.

You don't see a person blatantly go out and sin right away after spending time with God. You don't even get as angry, do you? I mean, I remember there's times, you know, you're in the morning and praying and a dog throws up.

The little one wakes up and you wish it would have been a couple hours later. You get the mean text that this is, and you're just able to deal with it. You're able to handle that because you've been built up and fortified and strengthened.

How many of you feel so much better Sunday leaving church? I mean, you can handle a flat tire and an attitude. That's why I like to have meetings right after second service because I'm like on spiritual high.

But come Monday afternoon, or Wednesday, that's when the hump week, I need to get to that Wednesday service because I'm about ready to lose it. And that's why that spiritual daily time with the Lord is so important.

You start it with the bookend in the morning and you end it in the evening. Because what you go to bed with is what you wake up with, mentally speaking. So true. So true. 5. Oh, this is good. Turns vague prayers into answered prayers.

From Vague Prayers to Targeted, Persevering Prayer

If you talk to many people, many Christians, they're kind of vague with their prayers. You know, Lord, just bless my kids. Okay, what does that mean? Lord, bless my marriage. What does that mean? Bless His food.

Let it nourish our bodies. You know, we're kind of vague about things. It's okay if you're in a hurry. You know, that's a good covering. But when you're spending time with God, those vague prayers now become targeted.

Targeted prayers. Lord, turn my son or daughter around ASAP. Get them to that altar. Lord, I want my home to be a holy sanctuary. I want this garbage off the... And now you're targeted prayers because now you've spent time with God and the Spirit is interceding on behalf.

Sometimes with groanings, we can't utter. Oh, God, I don't even know how to pray for this situation. Have You ever been there? It looks like all hell's breaking loose. How am I supposed to pray for answered?

It's like the opposite is happening. God, I don't know, and that stillness with the Lord, and that stillness as you're waiting on Him, and now your prayers are direct. Now, Lord, and you start to pray, bring such and such to their knees.

Convict them this week. Show them their sin. Open their eyes to their pride. And now you're targeted. Now you're vague, kind of I don't really have time. Now you're on a mission. Now you're like a woman in travail and calling down heaven and saying, God, and you're taking the altar as it were, and you're grabbing it and saying, God, I'm calling down heaven.

There's a passion. There's a desperation. Let me tell you, as a person that's committed my life to prayer and revival, I can tell you there's a huge difference when there's a passion and there's a desperation and there's a targeted approach and I'm persevering and I'm not giving in.

I might even miss dinner and spend time with You, Lord. It's like prayer on steroids. There's a difference. If it doesn't matter to you, does it matter to God? I mean, I hate using this example because I do a lot, but you know when your kid's kind of whining and whatever, they're fine.

Gina, can you relate, right? Brant, where's all the parents? Julia, but when the child starts crying, or there's a mommy, daddy, there's a desperation, you're going to stop doing what you're doing and you're going to attend to that need.

That's a cry that's not normal. That child is desperate. I need to go and rescue. Why? Because the volume, the intensity, it makes the parent come and see what's going on. There's tons of Scriptures. You guys hear me.

Come on, I don't have to. I'm preaching to the choir. My goodness. Those who call upon Me shall be saved. I will not cast away their voice. I will turn to them. If you seek Me, you will find Me. If you hunger, you will find Me.

If you desire, you will find Me. As a deer that pants, oh, my soul pants after Thee. There's an urgency. God hears those. There's a desperation. If My people are desperate and they humble themselves and pray and seek My face.

Renewed Passion, Purpose, and Spiritual Power

Oh, thank God for number six. God, guys, I don't come up here just to get loud and motivational. I feel it. The passion for God. Once you've tasted, you can never go back. Once you've tasted of the living water, you want it more.

I might not feel it all the time, but there's a desire. Taste and see that the Lord is good. And that stillness and waiting upon the Lord, it renews passion for God. Can you imagine if we would get passion for God back?

I mean, just a passion and a desperate plea. How many of you would email and call the office and say, hey, you mentioned that church, why can't we meet 40 days and 40 nights? Is that not true? Do we really have that desire and that passion?

You see what's going on out there? Folks, we don't live in a bubble. I just saw they're getting ready to put on one of the biggest satanic events ever in the history of our nation. I talked to a parent up in Tehachapi today when they had the satanic clubs.

They said the schools can't do anything. They said, but they're bound by law. Thank God I'm not the principal. My goodness, you challenge the law. If the law is against God's standard, whose law has final authority?

And I said, were there protests? Were there people like, I don't know, I didn't hear of much. Mutilation? 12 year olds, 14, 15, they're coming after children. You hear Biden talk, the kids are the states.

No, they're not. No, no, no. Guys, this talk will eventually come to fruition. Where's the desperation? Where's the passion? We can't have this happen on our watch. Where is it? I'm asking, where is it?

Waiting still before God renews our passion for Him. Passion is connected to so many different things. Passion is connected to purpose. You know how many people are lost? When I spoke to Ignite and the kids, and you can tell they have no real purpose.

I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I don't know what college. I don't know. Get the passion for God. Oh, you'll have a purpose. You'll have a purpose. Because here's why, even if you don't know what you're supposed to do, you know why you've been planted here on this earth.

But to glorify Him, and to worship Him, and to seek Him, and that's your purpose. That's your all-consuming passion. That's your desire. And then God will show you at school. He'll show you who to marry.

He'll get that right first. Walk down the right path first. And then all these, oh, I read that somewhere. Seek ye first. Seek ye first who to marry, and then everything else will fall into place. Seek ye first a good job.

Seek ye first cryptocurrency, and gold and silver investments, and 401 and stock, and seek ye first these things, and then get that foundation. No, seek ye first the kingdom of God. Then all the, I remember when I came back to the Lord, that's, He was my all-consuming passion.

I don't know what I was gonna do. I'm 30 years old, and I just gave up stock options. And all my career, and I'm just starting over. But I had a passion and a purpose. And you've got millionaires who take their lives because they don't know why they're here.

There's no passion. There's no purpose. And of course, with that comes another P, power. Spiritual power. Spiritual power, you can pray for people and see them set free. You can take authority over your homes.

I believe you can play a huge role in leading your children to the Lord by the power of your prayers. Did you know that God can give your child a dream that's so intense that they cry, get up crying, wanting God, and turn their lives over to Him?

Remember the story I've told with Jim Cimbala? His daughter was out on the streets of New York. And he went to a prayer meeting. He came home, he told his wife. That was the most incredible prayer meeting I've ever been to.

We lifted up Christi. If there's a God in heaven, that girl will be home. And guess who came home? I believe that next day. And she said, were you praying for me? Why? Because I was asleep or I was about to.

And I had this vision of me on this cliff and about ready to fall into the abyss of hell. God is sovereign. And I wonder, I wonder. I heard his story. And I'm like, what if he didn't go to that prayer meeting?

What about if he said, ah, she's not coming around? And he stayed at home and watched Fox News without Tucker Carlson. I couldn't resist. Back then it was probably, who knows what, ABC News. But the stillness renews a passion for God.

Restoring Faith by Focusing on God's Word and Presence

And then finally, one of the most incredible things is it will restore your faith. When your faith ceases to pray, your faith ceases to live. Ian Bowne said that. But also when your faith ceases to keep pursuing God, it will also dwindle and die.

The mind is so complex. I mean, I've got a book written by a neuro, what do they call that? Neuroscientist or what is that? Oh, neurologist, thank you. But on the brain chemistry and the neurons and the neuroplasticity on how the brain shapes and can change actually the way you feel and can alleviate depression and mood swings and just everything that's going on there, a lot of it by what we choose to focus on.