Vicki Keiser, Stephen’s Ministry and Church Council

Hebrews 11:31 (NLT)
It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute was not destroyed with the people in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.

Reflection:
You may remember the story of Rahab. She was an interesting resident of Jericho at the time of the siege of the City by the Israelites.  She found herself in a position to help two spies sent into Jericho by Joshua, the leader of Israelite tribes after Moses died.  When the King of Jericho sent soldiers to her house because he heard she was hiding spies, she lied by saying they had already left.  She even said that she did not know they were spies. Rahab was certain she and her family would perish when the Israelite tribes attacked. So she made a deal with the spies; she traded the safety of her family and herself when the Israelite tribes attacked Jericho for the safety and successful escape from Jericho by the spies. 

Both Rahab and the spies found themselves in a deadly position. Without Rahab’s actions the spies would most likely have been executed by the King of Jericho and without the spies’ promise and action Rahab and her family would most likely have perished in the attack by the Israelite tribes. If the spies did not return to report to Joshua then he might have seen this as a sign not to move forward. But God intervened–the spies arrived at a specific house in Jericho, a house whose resident feared the Lord, one that could and would save the spies.

The good news is I have not needed to hide any spies or worry about any enemy attacks of late; I am hoping you haven’t either.  But sometimes life deals us some tough situations; ones where it looks like we will never recover.  It could be a messy divorce, an unfair lawsuit, a chronic illness, an incurable disease, or even a global pandemic.

One situation for me was when I found out my Dad had Alzheimer’s disease and that it had no cure. He was just approaching retirement age; he had worked very hard all his life.  He taught Sunday School and was involved in many aspects of the church. I was devastated; our whole family was devastated. 

To be quite honest I was angry with God. But God intervened; he led me on a path to learn more about the disease along with my family.  While we could not save Dad, we could maybe make a difference for other families struggling with the disease. We attended support groups, formed a new support group, and I became involved in the local and national Alzheimer’s Association. Today I am still involved in efforts to help families facing dementia and it has all been an incredible blessing in my life. Along the way, I made many new friends that I know God put in my life.

There are times and situations where if we listen God can take a bad situation and guide us to a new and better place. We have to be willing to listen and let God intervene.

Prayer:
Dear Lord, Sometimes we feel hopeless but there is always hope with you.  Guide us to these places of hope; make us willing to let you intervene in our lives so that we become anew.  We pray this in your holy name.  Amen.