Composure

You and I live in a noisy world.
Noise. Noise. And more noise.
Hyped up infomercials and commercials scream at us. Agenda driven news bulletins upset us. Governmental mandates infuriate us.  Work environments test our patience. Family issues stress us. Financial pressures worry us. An immoral society concerns us.
“Noise” from the world has a way of pushing, pressuring and stressing you and me to react negatively instead of responding positively to life.
Honestly, many people, including some Christians, are so noise driven they would not know how to enjoy and savor a few moments of peace, quiet, serenity and contentment.
God’s remedy: compose and quiet our soul.
Simply put composure is a calmness or repose, especially of mind, bearing or appearance, self-possession. (Webster). To be composed means to handle life in a peaceful, self-assured, confident manner that is in control of responses to stress, pressure, adversity and opposition. 
The writer of Psalm 131 has the solution for life’s “noise” that disturbs and disrupts peace.
“O Lord my heart is not proud; nor my eyes haughty; nor do I involve myself in great matters, or in things too difficult for me.
Surely, I have composed and quieted my soul; like a weaned child rests against his mother, my soul is like a weaned child within me. Oh Israel, hope in the Lord from this time and forever.”
The Psalmist reminds the Lord that his heart is in the right place. The writer’s heart is not involved in and upset by things that, if you will, are above his pay grade!
His response to “noise” and chaos: Surely, I will compose and quiet my soul.
He chooses to compose and quiet himself when others are engaging in controversy and difficult matters they cannot resolve. He minds his own business with a composed and quiet soul.
The image of a weaned child resting quietly against his mother is a wonderful picture of how our soul should be when life’s noise overwhelms us.
As with the Psalmist, it is up to me, no one or anything else, if my soul is composed and quiet or not.
When I think of a composed, quiet soul, I think of the Lord Jesus Christ.
If anyone in history could have lost His composure, blown his “cool. it was God’s Son. From the moment He began His ministry, Jesus was rejected. Large crowds that initially followed Him, thinned when He told them what it would cost to follow Him. He was mocked, ridiculed, and falsely accused of blasphemy by the self-righteous, pompous religious hypocrites. He was denied by Peter, betrayed by Judas’ kiss on His cheek.
False witnesses spoke against Him before Pilate. Hate-filled crowds maliciously and mercilessly   screamed “Crucify Him! Crucify Him.” Cruel, brutal Roman soldiers drove iron spikes through His flesh. The Father turned away from Jesus when Jesus became sin for us.
Oh Lord Jesus, for three years You composed and quieted your soul when everything in your humanity must have wanted to cry out foul ball. This is not right what you are saying about Me and doing to Me.
Though misguided, evil men who listened to the noise of Satan and an unbelieving world lost their composure and killed God’s only Son, Jesus willingly went to the cross and declared before He died “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they do.”
Under unbelievable, tremendous pressure In the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus remained composed and quiet in His soul when he declared “Not my will, but Yours be done.”
Composed. Quiet. Lord, help me to live my life that way amid the “noise“of this lost world.
How to Compose and Quiet Your Soul

• When tempted to blow your stack, don’t. When life heats up, do not lose your cool. Compose yourself. Turn your soul’s thermostat down when life’s temperature rises.
• Keep your wits about you when someone ruffles your emotional feathers. Choose to not be rattled, shaken and say or do something stupid!
• Ask the Holy Spirit to quiet your soul when you want to scream and make a scene.
• Guard your peace when the world attempts to disrupt your peace in Christ.
• Remember how Jesus, surrounded by “noise,” composed and quieted Himself.
• Be accountable to a Christian confidant who will help you compose yourself when necessary.
• Make it a habit to compose yourself and quiet your soul every day through prayer, study and mediation of God’s Word in the Bible. The Word produces peace.
• Composed, cool heads will prevail in the end. “Noise” does not have to win.
• Thank the Lord for “the peace of God that passes all understanding.” (Philippians 4:6-7)

A composed person will manage life much more effectively and successfully than one who is upset.
How about your soul? Composed and quiet amid the noise?
“In quietness and confidence will be your strength.” Isaiah 30:15
“Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10
A Word For Your Week: Soul composure and quietness is our friend.
​