Rapha

Maybe one of the only positive perks of my occasional drives to Newark is that I pick up a great Christian radio station out of NYC around Exit 74 on the Parkway. Thursday there was a pastor chatting with the radio hosts and he gave a great talk about a short verse in Psalms we (hopefully!) all know and have heard many times but it struck me and I did some further treasure hunting on Psalm 46:10.

"Be still, and know that I am God".  The way the pastor broke it down was like this: God says to us "Be still"=be quiet, settle down, listen close because I want to tell you something important..."and know"=get this!, understand this, believe this with all your being..."that I am God"=I have it all under control, YOU are not Me (if you put the emphasis on 'I'), I am sovereign, I am all powerful, all knowing, over all!

I took it a bit further. In my senior year of college some girl named Lisa Reesman gave me a book by Kay Arthur called Lord, I Want to Know You. Shamefully, I don't even recall who this girl was, why she gave me a book, or the nature of our relationship (yikes!), but it's a great study on all the different names of God used throughout the Bible. The "God" used in Psalm 46:10=Elohim, God as God, or God as Creator. And if God in Psalm 46:10 is Creator, then He is the One who created me, knows me, fashioned me for a particular time and purpose. "...that I am God"="I created you, Jen...I know what you are going through right now and why...I knew this was coming because I ordered it and orchestrated it before you were even born for your good and your growth". What a comfort!

But here's the best part for me..."still" used here means "to slacken" in Hebrew. Of course I consulted Websters and slacken means "to make slack as by lessening tension". A few posts back, I think I titled it "Hot Head", I talked about how I get this heat in the back of my head when I am in stressful situations. That phenomenon has occurred more and more over the last few weeks so I did some research and it turns out my "hot head" is a rather rare form of tension headache (lucky me!) So to learn that to truly "be still" as commanded in this verse means to "lessen tension" spoke volumes. I might think I get quiet and settle and consult God in prayer or meditate on a verse or truth, but I confess that rarely, in the moment, do I "still" myself. I am NOT the lady in the picture! I utter a quick "Please help!" as I'm running off to do this or that...Even, if I'm honest with myself, my prayer times in the car are not 100% still, as I was challenged by a fellow believer some time ago. "You aren't really praying as you should", this person said, "because you aren't 100% engaged. You're watching the road, your speed, other drivers, etc." >:(  I didn't like that but, in the context of what I now know about "Be still", there is some truth to that.

And here's more! One of the roots for "still" is the Hebrew word "rapha" which means to mend or heal. In fact, several times in the Bible God is referred to as "Jehovah-rapha"=the God Who Heals. So how cool that when God tells us to "Be still" He is actually ushering us into a state of healing? Or mending our minds, our hearts, our souls? "Be still"...ease your tension, relax, mend your self, get your mind right, heal your heart...I love this!

A bit of humor to end..."know" used in this verse in Hebrew is "yada"...I made myself say, "Be still and yadayadayada, I am God"(in Seinfeld fashion!) Who says God don't have a sense of humor!?  :D