Yesterday Crystal, my sister-in-love, sent me this picture of a snake she was trying to pull out of the ground thinking it was a huge root. It was stubborn and took a lot of strength, and boy was she surprised!!! Living in West Texas, we run across snakes pretty regularly, but normally they are unexpected at that moment in time. Her moment of terror became my moment of excitement. She said I could come get it and was glad to remove it from her flowerbed.
**Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.” But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don’t know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.” (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.) So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut. Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “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. Joshua 2:1-11
When Crystal found this snake, that is what is was to her…a snake. It was a detestable, unwanted creature she wanted nothing to do with and nowhere near her children.
I’m sure there were people who felt that way about Rahab, too. She was a “undesirable,” a member of society looked down upon and cast out. But God saw Rahab’s potential and used her for His glory. While society looked on the outside, God looked on the inside. Because Rahab did what she had been created for, the spies were saved, and the Israelites eventually defeated Jericho.
When I saw her picture, I saw purpose. We have lived on our “little piece of heaven” for over twenty-one years. We love having good snakes around here to keep the rattlers and mice down, especially after Xavier was bitten by the rattlesnake. Our family enjoys hognoses. Benny calls them the “boxers of snakes.” They allow you hold them and normally don’t try to bite unless they are scared or mishandled. They quickly become docile and actually start enjoying the attention. What is detestable, cast aside and frightens most of society is desirable to us They have a great purpose for our family, and we are hoping to keep this hognose around for years to come.
**You, LORD, give perfect peace to those who keep their purpose firm and put their trust in You. Trust in the LORD forever; He will always protect us. Isaiah 26:3-4
Sometimes people feel like that…undesirable, useless or cast aside. But God has a purpose for every single person He creates. We make mistakes and fall short of His glory, but He still uses us for His kingdom, and we are important in His plan.
LORD, this morning I thank You for making each of us with a special purpose, passion, and a path You desire us to travel. Show us the way You deem best and lead us down the right roads. Give us wisdom in making decisions that will bring glory to You. Change our vision to see our own value. May we remember the courage of Rahab and fulfill our callings even when we are scared to do so. Remind us of Your ultimate sacrifice and what it cost to buy us when we think we might be “less than.” May we look for opportunities to see value in those we do life with who may not think they are as precious as they truly are. As we move forward into the day, help us see purpose when others see problems. Thank You for this little hognose and for giving him a job to do that makes life sweeter and safer for us. Amen
**And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28
**All the days ordained for me were written in Your book
before one of them came to be. Psalm 139:16
**All things are done according to God’s plan and decision; and God chose us to be His own people in union with Christ because of His own purposes, based on what He had decided from the very beginning. Ephesians 1:11
**I know many are afraid of snakes are they are detestable, so no hate mail, please!! 🤣🤣
ON THE PORCH 