Another example of an unexpected person used by God to save His people is found in Joshua 2. This is the story of a woman who lived a life that did not line up with God’s desire for healthy relationships. She found herself looking for approval and love from any man who came by. She made her living bouncing from man to man. Yet God chose to use her.
Could you imagine for a minute being Joshua and his men? They go into a town and things get a little dicey. They need help getting away from the people trying to hurt them. Who do they find willing to help them? Rahab! You know the woman who didn’t look like a follower of God by her actions. She’s the one God chose to call for this particular mission – Save my people.
She would even go on to give a pretty good testimony of her faith that God had already delivered things over to the Israelites. She let her faith lead her actions even though her lifestyle to this point didn’t show it.
When God chose to send His Son to be born in the little town of Bethlehem, he didn’t do what everyone expected. He didn’t send a powerhouse king or a warrior. He sent a child. Not even a rich child. Just a regular lower to middle class child!
This child would grow up and do more than just hide God’s people from danger like Rahab did. Jesus would grow to win the ultimate victory over our greatest enemy – death. The point of Advent is to put our hearts in the right place to be able to see what God is up to this time of year. He’s giving us time to slow down and prepare for the coming of the unexpected King of kings who looked more like a peasant than royalty. That’s just how God works. Now it’s time to look for the unexpected as we prepare our hearts for Christmas.
It’s so good to know that His mercies are new and fresh every morning. I often wonder how many I miss seeing.