Keys to the Kingdom By Carolyn Tucker
Shut Up and Stand Still
If Mom said it once, she probably said it 100 times: “If you can’t say anything good, then don’t say anything at all.” She was quite excellent in following her own advice. She taught me by her example — it’s just that I’m a slower learner when it comes to my big mouth. I’m definitely a work-in-progress so I plan to keep following the teachings of Jesus until He leads me Home.
When the Israelites were fleeing from Egypt and saw that the Egyptians were beginning to overtake them, they began flapping their whiny jaws to Moses, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? …Why did you make us leave Egypt? …It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!” (Exodus 14:11-12 NLT). Moses didn’t even respond to their annoying accusations and simply told them, “The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent” (Exodus 14:14 NASB). This was a walloping statement of faith spoken by the meekest man on earth. Sometimes the most-difficult thing to do is be quiet, stand still, and watch God work.
We’re supposed to refrain from saying “shut up” when we need someone to be quiet. Moses would’ve probably been tempted to use a few of the following colloquialisms if he’d known them: cork it, put a sock in it, hush your gums, shut your biscuit hatch, put a lid on it, shut your pie hole, clam up, pipe down. If anyone could push Moses’ buttons, it was the 3 million people he was responsible for leading. In the Book of Exodus, we read about the many times the Israelites complained against Moses and God. These wilderness wanderers were suffering from chronic irritable jowl syndrome but didn’t seem to be interested in getting rid of it because they’d it for 40 years.
David understood the importance of words. He prayed, “Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips” (Psalm 141:3-4 NKJV). Maybe his mom taught him the same thing mine did. There are often occasions when I pray for God to put a guard over my mouth because I need grace to shut my pie hole. Just because I have an opinion doesn’t mean I should share it, especially if I know it might rub someone’s fur the wrong way. We humans have always been prone to tongue-sins and we earnestly need God’s grace to keep us from speaking amiss.
In the New Testament, we find Paul and Silas stripped and severely beaten with rods, and thrown into prison with their feet fastened in the stocks. This day was not going well for these two missionaries. But on the flip-side of the Israelites, Paul and Silas were not having a silent night. Around midnight, they were praying and singing hymns to God. “While all the other prisoners listened to their worship, suddenly a great earthquake shook the foundations of the prison. All at once every prison door flung open and the chains of all the prisoners came loose” (Acts 16:25-26 TPT).
It is no secret that God does the miraculous when His children are either practicing silent faith or actively praising and thanking Him. God does His best work when He is welcomed, revered, and obeyed. If we’re complaining and whining the same sad song, God won’t work in that “Debbie Downer” atmosphere. When we stop griping and start believing, we’re giving God what He requires in order to move our mountains.
The Key: Put a sock in it or sing. Then stand still and watch God work.