In God Alone...

Rest is a natural part of the rhythm of life. We long to relax and sleep after “a hard day at the office.” We look forward to a day off each week. We anticipate a restful vacation after months of work. But how do we experience rest? How do we get a good night’s sleep? How do we let things go during a holiday weekend or an extended vacation?

Whenever Psalm 62 comes around in the cycle of psalms, I am reminded that true rest is found in God alone. The psalm begins, “In God alone is my soul at rest.” Consider that our minds and bodies rest only as our souls are at peace.

The writer of Psalm 62 is in the midst of an unsettled situation. He laments, “How long will you all attack one man to break him down, as though he were a tottering wall, or a tumbling fence?” So he longs for rest from the commotion. And he begins by telling the truth: “In God alone is my soul at rest.” A few verses later he reminds himself to act on the truth: “In God alone be at rest, my soul.”

So how can we rest in God? I have two suggestions. First, quietly meditate on the truth. Find a peaceful place where you will not be disturbed. Sit quietly and let the rhythm of your breathing set the pace for the truth to run through your mind: “In God alone is my soul at rest.”

My second suggestion is to consider the simplicity and word-order of the statement: “In God alone is my soul at rest.” That translation is more satisfying for me than alternatives such as, “My soul finds rest in God alone;” or “Truly my soul finds rest in God.”

The version I have settled on puts God first. The writer tells us that in God my soul finds rest: “He alone is my rock, my salvation, my fortress; never shall I falter.” Next it says that God alone is my source of rest—not alternatives such as TV, music, parties, alcohol, or drugs. And it is my soul that rests in God. That’s the part of me that relates most fully to the Creator. The other parts of my being follow the inclination of my soul. The final word of the adage is rest—literally silence. That is, when my soul is silent, not cluttered with worries and anxiety, I am at rest. The goal is rest; the source is God.

So the next time you are frazzled, consider meditating on Psalm 62 verses 1 and 5. “In God alone is my soul at rest;” and “In God alone be at rest, my soul.”

Note: The translation of Psalm 62 that I have used is from The Revised Grail Psalms, Copyright © 2010.  Click on  

https://www.giamusic.com/sacred_music/RGP/psalmDisplay.cfm?psalm_id=274 to view the full text.