A couple nights ago at a church home group meeting, the ice-breaker question was, "What Biblical person (other than Jesus) would you like to meet?" Many people would probably jump to the Bible big-names—David, Paul, Moses, Adam, or Eve, maybe even one of the namesakes of the books. My mind started going to the smaller, lesser-known women. I thought of Deborah, Sarah, Rachel, or Leah. Esther, Bathsheba, or even Gomer or Hagar. Each of these women have fascinating stories. However, my mind rested on Rahab. Rahab was a prostitute who hid two Israelite spies sent by Joshua in Jericho. She helped protect them from the king of Jericho, and because of her faith, she entered the lineage of Christ. I started thinking about her more—thinking about what her life must have been like, and how one seemingly small decision altered the course of her life. And God used her life to show us something about His character. When most people hear Rahab's name, they immediately think,...
In March, executive orders from governors across the country forced us to stay home, to close schools and churches and to shut down private businesses. Businesses were classified as either "essential" or "non-essential." All businesses deemed "non-essential" were forced to close. This included markets, clothing stores, boutiques, dine-in restaurants, and beauty salons. State parks, city parks, beaches, walking trails, lakes, and other wide open spaces were closed as well. Many people feel that the "social distancing," as it has come to be known, and stay at home executive orders violate their constitutional rights, such as our First Amendment right to freely exercise our religion, our right to peaceably assemble, and that we shall not be deprived of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Some of the people who feel their rights have been violated have decided to exercise their First Amendment right to protest. Some have even chosen...