be still- raphah.
author’s note-
before the blog post officially begins, I wanted to give you some songs to listen to while reading this post. so, queue these up on Spotify or Apple Music, press play, and read to your hearts desires. click this link for the “be still” playlist. okay, now back to reading!
it’s one of the busiest seasons of the year. Christmas is coming up, and while it’s a fun holiday, it can easily get extremely overwhelming. there are what feels like a million people to see, so many gifts to buy, and don’t forget the holiday traditions that happen every year like clockwork.
when I think of how Christmas is celebrated now, versus how the first Christmas was celebrated, I see many distinct differences.
the first Christmas was still. it was quiet. there weren’t many people around. in the Christmas story, Luke only mentions shepherds being at the manger along with Mary, Joseph, and Jesus (Luke 2:15-17). the Magi came later in the story, arriving at Mary and Joseph’s house to see Jesus (Matthew 2:11)
so, even the nativity scene we have in our houses during the Christmas season is busier than it really was when Jesus was born. maybe Christmas time isn’t really about being busy, but about being still. the Lord has gently had to call me over and over again out of the business of the world into the rest and the stillness I find in His presence.
I see this theme all throughout Scripture. when Moses and the Israelites escape Egypt, God gives a powerful command to Moses that doesn’t really make sense to anyone with common sense (faith is the opposite of common sense, though).
Moses says to the Israelites, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still” (Exodus 14:13-14, NIV). Still in Hebrew means raphah, which in our words means “to heal, to cure, to restore”.
in the very next chapter, God uses the same Hebrew word for still to describe His name. in Exodus 15:26, God names Himself the healer. He states, “If you listen carefully to the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you” (NIV). God calls Himself Jehovah Rapha, the God who heals. as I read both of these passages, a realization hit me- with healing comes stillness.
in a world where it’s really hard to be still, no wonder we don’t see God’s healing. we want things done in our way, in our timing, and in our fashion. I doubt Mary wanted to travel to Bethlehem while pregnant, which took about a ten days journey to arrive in Bethlehem from Nazareth. I doubt Mary preferred to be stuck out of the house in a manger giving birth to Jesus, because there wasn’t any lodging available for them, but I believe deep down Mary understood and knew God as Jehovah Rapha, the Lord who heals. she knew that this baby was going to heal the whole world, so she humbly accepted her role in bringing Jesus to this earth.
I wonder where we can grow to be more like Mary and Moses in the times where we feel like rushing and making sure things get done our way. I know I am tempted to take matters into my own hands, wanting to expedite the raphah process. like, can this please come in Amazon prime style? I’ve had to learn that God doesn’t work that way.
seeing God as Jehova Rapha became real and tangible to me these past few months. I recently had to quit my job for various reasons that were honestly out of my control. it didn’t make sense to me (and it honestly still doesn’t) why the Lord let me go through this difficult season in my life where it felt like everyone and everything was against me. I felt a lot like the Israelites trying to get out of Egypt. the Egyptians were coming after me, and I really wanted to take a stab at doing things my way. fighting my own battles. the Lord had and still has to work in me my ability to be raphah, to be still and know that He is fighting my battles for me. He had to remind me that He still fights for me on my behalf. He goes before me and behind me, He goes ahead of me and prepares me.
these are a few Scriptures that remind me to be raphah-
“Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10 NLT).
“The Lord will fight for you, you need only to be still” (Exodus 14:14 NIV).
“Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; He will neither fail you nor abandon you” (Deuteronomy 31:8, NLT).
“Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked scheme” (Psalm 37:7 NLT).
“Let all I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken” (Psalm 62:5-6 NLT).
“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock. He humbles the proud, and brings down the arrogant city. He brings it down to the dust” (Isaiah 26:3-5 NLT).
“Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light” (Matthew 11:28-30 NLT).
"Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7 NLT)
this is my prayer-
there are so many more verses I could list, but these have been the main ones keeping me grounded in raphah this holiday season. I pray you are able to find moments in your day to be still, to take in the Lord’s tangible presence, and to remind yourself that healing comes with being still. I pray we all are like Mary, who pondered these things in her heart and thought about them often (Luke 2:19), who never lost sight of seeing the Lord as Jehova Rapha.
