How to Be Still and Find Peace in Every Season

How do you prioritize rest and peace in your day?  

In 2020, COVID-19 forced the world to be still. My household consisted of a two-month-old baby, a 3-year-old, and a 5-year-old. Our family of five moved into our new home the week before the government called for the COVID-19 lockdown.

My husband and I stayed home with three little children for almost a year. Looking back, that time was exhausting yet simple and precious. By the grace of God, we made it through. Community is important, but forced lockdowns brought relief from the pressure to engage in extraneous activities so my husband and I could focus on our family during a busy season of child-rearing.

Circumstances have changed, and COVID-19 no longer forces us to be still. The expectations have piled high to engage with family, school, work, and church. The options are endless for how we choose to use our time. Knowing which season you're in is a helpful tool for making good choices about engagement outside your home.

KnowYour season

What season of life are you in? August provides a new beginning and a time to evaluate where we are headed. How do we find peace and rest in our current season?

The answer is found in the Psalms, encouraging us to, Be still, and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10 NIV). Another translation renders the phrase "be still" as "cease striving." What does the phrase cease striving mean in this context? Cease striving is the word raphah in Hebrew. Which, in this context, means “to let go, relax, or drop one's hands, telling restless nations and individuals to stop fighting against God.”[1]

The action of not working does not capture the heart of ceaseless striving. The better way to describe being still is working with God, not against him.

We can run around actively accomplishing many good things, but the question remains, are the good things we are striving to achieve God things? We find the most peace and rest for our souls when we are in complete surrender to God and his plan. To rest in this context does not mean inactivity but right activity.

We strive for many things on this earth: approval, wealth, power, and fame. Driving for miles and miles only to realize we are headed in the wrong direction can be frustrating and time-wasting. How are we to know if we are headed in the right direction?

The Benefits of Surrender

When we daily surrender our lives to God, he helps us course-correct. Ecclesiastes 3 reminds us that there are different seasons, with times of hard work and times of rest. Connecting with God in prayer and Bible reading is an invaluable course-correcting tool to incorporate into our mornings. We find peace and rest in our busy lives when we partner with the ultimate life guide.

What season are you in? In your season, is God prompting you to step up, step down, or wait? How can you incorporate a daily connection with God to partner with him at the beginning of your day?

I will leave you with a chorus from one of my favorite songs.

Me Without You By Toby Mac

“I'd be packin' my bags when I need to stay

I'd be chasin' every breeze that blows my way

I'd be building my kingdom just to watch it fade away

It's true, That's me without You”[2]

[1] “H7503 - Rāp̄â - Strong’s Hebrew Lexicon (NASB20),” Blue Letter Bible, accessed August 3, 2026, https://www.blueletterbible.org/nasb20/gen/1/1/s_1001.

[2] “tobyMac - Me Without You Lyrics | AZLyrics.Com,” accessed August 1, 2026, https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/tobymac/mewithoutyou.html.