Rahab’s middle name was THE; her last name was Harlot. She belonged to a very old and lucrative profession. Not the kind of individual you’d think would be in the genealogy of Christ, but there she is.

How did that happen? First of all, she heard about the God of Israel. Secondly, she saw the proof that He was actively involved in Israel’s deliverance and journey on the planet. Lastly, she was given the opportunity to make a commitment to the people of God.

Her statement was quite profound:

Joshua 2:9-11

 “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you.  We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed.  When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.

I don’t think I’m addressing any harlots, but whatever your sinful condition, there is a future with God.  She not only came to know the one true God, but enjoyed a future with one man who had also found refuge in the Almighty.

Like Paul Harvey might say, “One day we will meet her and get the rest of the story.”

Think about it.

Gary

Fifteen years ago I officiated at a wedding of an active-duty Marine and a woman whom I’d known since she was a child. The years passed with many military moves for the family, and war duties challenged them along the way as their family grew. During that time, he got a degree in Christian studies and retired in his early forties from the Marine Corp. He became an assistant pastor in Massachusetts and made the decision that ordination would be part of his Christian journey.

He asked me to be on his ordination board, and I considered that a privilege.  Seeing this couple grow over the years, even during difficult circumstances, has been a wonder to behold.

This brings me to a couple of verses fitting for their ministry:

Philippians 1:6

 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

1 Timothy 1:18

This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare,

God is still equipping and calling proven, capable individuals into the ministry. What a blessing this is for those of us in the last quarter of the game.

Think about it.

Gary

The Apostle Paul was a prisoner of Rome heading to trial before Caesar. In the course of that journey, he found himself confronted by a serious dilemma.

Acts 27:10

And saying, “Men, I perceive that this voyage will end with disaster and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives.”

Some timely lessons can be drawn from this passage in Acts 27:

1. One filled with the Spirit can see the direction the voyage is taking when seasoned seamen can’t.
2. One can make a true statement that sounds ridiculous to the natural man.
3. Experience or the Word of God seems to be the theme of the chapter.
4. The majority decided to sail on which proves that the majority can be wrong.
5. A gentle wind looked like opportunity when it was actually luring them to disaster.
6. Fighting the inevitable is a losing battle.
7. Don’t give up trying because you can reap a harvest with patience and time.

Galatians 6:9

And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

They all survived because there was a man on board armed with the truth and willing to reveal it.

Think about it.

Gary

My mother could converse in French and so could her best friend. I thought they had learned that language so they could carry on a conversation without anyone knowing what the two of them were talking about. I was an adult before I realized they both came from bilingual families and, as a result, spoke two languages fluently from childhood.

Languages are made up of sounds and there are 7,139 languages in the world. All languages have underlying rules of syntax which, along with morphological rules, make up every language’s grammar.

Almost two thousand years ago, one particular church had members making up sounds that were foreign to any language. Paul the Apostle wrote to correct the situation. This is what he wrote:

1 Corinthians 13:10-12, 19

 Undoubtedly there are all sorts of languages in the world, yet none of them is without meaning. If then I do not grasp the meaning of what someone is saying, I am a foreigner to the speaker, and the speaker is a foreigner to me.  So it is with you. 

 But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.

As followers of Christ, it is imperative that we speak in such a way that the hearer is not confused.

Think about it.

Gary

I just finished reading the diary of a Jewish professor who survived Germany in WW2. The account is of the daily grind of persecution, beatings, fear and humiliation. Death was constantly at the door even for some time after the allied victory.

In this book, there is the absence of any relationship with God or even an interest as to where such evil as Nazism came from on a biblical level. It was only secular reasoning that interested him during this time. There was no mention of Jesus, sin or the salvation of God.

If human effort can get an individual through such horror, how much more can a personal relationship with God. Consider the Apostle Paul:

2 Corinthians 4:9

persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;

2 Corinthians 11:24

Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes.

2 Timothy 2:9

for which I suffer hardship even to imprisonment as a criminal; but the word of God is not imprisoned.

How do your troubles stack up with his? If God strengthened him through trials and trouble, can He get you through?

Think about it.

Gary

He had been a football player in college and, by the looks of him, he must have been a cornerback. She was a seventh-grade girl maybe weighing in at a little over a hundred pounds. Leaning in towards her, with hands on both sides of the girl’s desk, this red-faced teacher was yelling directions and insinuations as spit flew. I thought he would split open his sports-jacket. She was staring straight ahead with a look of total unconcern and lack of fear. I don’t know what she did to set him off, but whatever it was, I wouldn’t be caught doing it. One of my memories is his throwing a boy up against a cement wall.

She was my cousin, and at that moment I believed she was the bravest girl in the world. Years later, I asked her how she could show such indifference in the face of such brutal threats. She related to me that she had the ability to just shut down till the storm passed. That might be genetic, but I sure didn’t get that gene.

Sometimes we find ourselves in situations that just don’t seem to have an escape-hatch attached to it.

Paul the Apostle found himself in such a place and this is what he had to say:

2 Corinthians 4:7-11

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed— always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 

How do you handle those situations?

Think about it.

Gary

I grew up in northern Maine and understood the need to be cautious on icy roads, probably because I misjudged and ended up in the ditch on more than one occasion. Until I had experience in the trucking industry, I believed that if a vehicle were heavy enough, it wouldn’t slide. Man, was I wrong.

Back in the day, with a truck loaded with logs I was headed for Canada and enjoying my new job as a log-truck driver.  However, my speed was too fast for the turn unto the bridge crossing the St John River. The truck went into a skid and my heart seemed to have stopped. At the last second, the proper correction was made and the expedition continued. Trying to calm down, I think I smoked ten cigarettes after that.

The reason for this narrative is to get us to understand the difference between what we think and the principles that actually govern life.

Galatians 6:3

 For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

When you look at the context of this verse, it is quite profound. We may believe it is not possible to take on other people’s burdens when, in reality, the addition will help us carry our own. This is how God designed it. It will give us the traction we need to navigate life’s challenges.

It is the difference between what we think and reality.

Think about it.

Gary