Calming Your Soul - Psalm 131

“O Lord, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forevermore.”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭131‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭ESV‬‬

*The “Lord here is Yahweh as in Exodus 3:14, I AM I AM Yahweh. He is LORD the self-existent, personal, unchanging, self-sufficient, covenant-keeping only true God worth seeking. He exits. He doesn’t need us, but He created us and loves us. We were made to glorify Him, and when we submit to His way and His sovereign lordship, life works better. This Psalm is an expression of complete humble submission to and dependence upon the Lord. It is a rejection of arrogance or pride, emptied of self (Proverbs 3:34; 1 Peter 5:5).

Instead of looking down on others despite accomplishments, David only looks up at his God. He had come to know in his heart this wonderful freedom and joy of submission. 

What a good reminder and example it is to us to reject selfish ambition. It’s not about promotion or position. May we make it our ambition to know the Lord, to treasure Him and pursue Him, His ways, and His word alone. Philippians 2:3 says, "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves." Philippians 3:13-14 says, "Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

Spurgeon said, “Frequently, too, we exercise ourselves in great matters by having a high ambition to do something very wonderful in the church. This is why so very little is done. The great destroyer of good works is the ambition to do great works.”

Guzik includes, “It is…difficult to recognize unruly ambition as a sin because it has a kind of superficial relationship to the virtue of aspiration – an impatience with mediocrity, and a dissatisfaction with all things created until we are at home with the Creator, the hopeful striving for the best God has for us.” (Peterson, cited in Boice)

God doesn’t need us to DO MORE. He wants us to BE present with Him. To soak in His Word. Psalm 27:4 reminds us of this: “One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.” ‭‭Psalm‬ ‭27‬:‭4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

When we are sensitive to His Spirit after marinating in His Word and walking in His presence, He will then show us what to do. He will lead us to do only as He directs our path. To do the next right thing. To minister, encourage and serve where our feet are. 

May we simply start somewhere and be satisfied to be used in lowly situations. It doesn’t have to be grand, just consistent. When our eyes are looking around for someone to encourage and serve, we have little time to think of and focus on ourselves. May we be content and fruitful where our feet are. It’s not about doing great things for God. It’s about being obedient and spending daily time in His Word. There you can know exactly what He wants you to do or not do, where He wants you to go or not go.

David was careful not to demand to know God’s mind, a valuable lesson Job learned and in which he was humbled. God doesn’t owe us an explanation. He has already been merciful not to give us what we deserve and gracious to give us good things we don’t deserve. We are his submitted servants (Luke 1:38; 17:10). We have no right to demand anything from Him, much less an answer to our “why did this happen” questions.  (Job 40:1-5; 42:1-6) Deuteronomy 29:29 says, “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”

Reflection: How do you calm and quiet your own soul? Instead of ambitious pursuits, David contented himself by finding satisfaction in God and was content with His presence and works.

Rest and wait for the Lord, and you will find contentment.

Guzik writes, “The weaned child comes to realize that the denial of one of the mother’s gifts does not mean denial of the mother’s presence. He comes to love the mother herself instead of the gift received from her.” The process of weaning may be a child’s first battle. It doesn’t come easily or naturally.

Jay writes, “Weaned from what? Self-sufficiency, self-will, self-seeking. From creatures and the things of the world – not, indeed, as to their use, but as to any dependence upon them for his happiness and portion.” (cited in Spurgeon; qtd. in Guzik).

Spurgeon writes, “Blessed are those afflictions which subdue our affections, which wean us from self-sufficiency, which educate us into Christian manliness, which teach us to love God not merely when he comforts us, but even when he tries us.” (qtd. in Guzik).

Psalm 119: 67-68, 71 says, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word. You are good and do good; teach me your statutes. It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.”

When we are weaned from self, selfish ambitions, and our clinging attachments to the things of this world, we can better think of others. The things of this world become less enjoyable, obedience becomes more joyful, and His Word, more savory.  How was Jesus able to do the Father’s will? He had no self-ambition. "My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work."(John 4:34)

God’s Spirit gives us power to apply this Psalm 131, not trusting ourselves, our wisdom or power, but the Lord’s alone. It takes a lifetime to keep practicing trusting, but repent now of your prideful dependence on self, and the worry it causes and surrender to be content with trusting and obeying His way.

Examine yourself to see if you’re a child of God. If not, repent and confess, agree with Him, believe and surrender. Then the sanctification process is learning to be less and less like ourselves and more like Jesus, like a weaned child, content with God’s likeness and satisfied with His presence.

Works Cited:

Guzik, David. "Psalm 131 - Enduring Word." Enduring Word, 31 Mar. 2026, enduringword.com/bible-commentary/psalm-131.