Cause Rahab: Redeeming Women With a Past

he concept of "Women with a past," evokes many images in the mind of the reader and not any of them very good. We might think mostly of certain women of the night, but this post isn't really about that type of woman, and yet it is. Our choices in life, how we are raised, and who we choose to have around us tend to force us into lifestyles and situations we may not otherwise want or conceive of doing or even participating in our lifetimes. The prostitute Rahab in the Biblical story of the Battle of Jericho comes to my mind as one of those women. Her honoring of God and His servants got her everywhere with God, and in return, God did something truly wonderful for her legacy. I, too, am a woman with a past, hoping to be free from it, and chances are, you could be, too. For everyone hoping that their pasts don't determine their future legacy, this post is for you, and it is for this reason I write "Cause Rahab: Redeeming Women with a Past."

Humbling Obedience

It is humbling to admit my past to you, but out of obedience to God, I am writing this. I believe His hope is to care for others caught in shame, embarrassment, or hiding. God doesn't want us to live in shame. He doesn't want us to live like there isn't hope for us, or that we are some kind of second-class citizen.

Jesus, when confronted with a woman with a seedy past, accepted her, encouraged her, came to her aid, and reminded her to "Go and sin no more." (John 8:11) Another occasion, he met a woman at a well. (John 4) He struck up a conversation with her and evangelized her--without judging her relationships.

When you don't know better you can't do better. Jesus changed that for her. He taught her that living water exists when we know Him. She would never thirst again! And who He was offering it to? Not the elite in the town. He was offering it to a woman with a seedy past. She would go on to be one of the greatest woman evangelists for Christ having met the Messiah. When you finally do know better, then you can be free and live like it.

Our Past: We're Only Passing Through

If we look at it Biblically, reaching for the good, our past can help shape our future in a good way. If the Lord doesn't condemn us, why should we? You can help others who make the same mistake. See it, as I do now for myself, as a steppingstone to better, and we aren't staying there we are only passing through.

"Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow." James 1:2-3 The Message

Learning From Life Choices

Notice this verse does not make stipulations. Say we chose, against our better judgment, a wrong way to handle a situation or life choice. Maybe it was something simple. It doesn't say anything about that. The word, "Troubles" can encompass a whole lot. Even if it's the kind of troubles we put on ourselves in our own ignorance or stubbornness. Jesus freed us from shame 2,000 years ago on the Cross. This post is not intending to shame, but rather, empower the one reading this. You, dear one, are not identified by your mistakes. And you don't have to bear them.

My Seedy Past

For me, my main my problem began in childhood. I had an issue with lust. Whew, glad

that's out there. God helped me identify it, honestly, through my journaling in my quiet times with Him. I wouldn't have called it lust, but when the King of Kings calls it that, what can you do but accept it and try to get rid of it?

I was a lonely child and young adult and wanted to be loved. I did not look at pornography necessarily, but I did tend to idolize men that I was attracted to. I grew up feeling as if I was unacceptable in every way: In my appearance, in weight, in speech, in intellect, in any way a person shows themself, I did not feel confident in myself.

"For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. 1 John 2:16 NIV

The Cycle of Pain

I truly wanted to be wanted and accepted for who I was, but I did not fit into the mold that was so popular. I was always made fun of for my size because I was an overweight kid. As a result, I felt unacceptable to family, and any men in my life at all. Because of this, I ate to comfort myself. This would grow into eating in any sort of emotional distress. Of course, this didn't do anything but make my situation even worse in terms of being found acceptable in my mind, and it became a cycle of pain and torment for me.

My Issue With Lust and Food

Lust in my heart grew as I desired more and more to be loved and I was always a victim of unrequited love. Love was constantly in the forefront of my mind. Food was my only friend, and I would even lust over certain foods especially. (Also known as

food addiction.) I'd imagine them and would crave the flavors they would bring in cooking them or eating them. When I had consumed them, my moods and situations seemed to always improve.

Idolatry Against God

Later in my walk with God, He began to show me that my problem was also idolatry. Because I was trying my best to draw near to Him, I attempted to put the food addiction down. I tried fasting to get rid of these chains that seemed to bind me for so long. I looked to the Word of God to see how God saw idolatry and was horrified to discover how He truly saw it. The Old Testament is chock full of times, ways, and incidents of Israel's idolatry. Israel then, and all of us, is no different than people today.

"All the prophets spoke against idolatry in the Bible as well. I never connected the dots for me personally, because I was not bowing down to a golden statue. However, God showed me where I was wrong, and I listened."

What Idolatry Means to God

Deuteronomy 4:24 says: ""For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God." This verse, used in Deuteronomy is spoken by Moses to the Children of Israel regarding idolatry. It reminds us that God desires (and deserves) our only worship. He hates anything that will rival that affection and adoration that only He should have in our lives. Why? Because Jesus already died for all of us. Whether you accept Jesus or not, He already paid for your sins and your one-way ticket to Heaven, should you receive Him.

The entire book of Hosea is about the prophet being married to a prostitute and her running out on him. It reflects the heart-broken prophet's decision to be faithful to her regardless of her wild ways, and the pains he must have suffered through it. God had him do this so that Israel could understand better that He is their husband. This is how they are choosing to treat Him. Our precious God goes through this with each of us when our allegiance isn't what it should be before Him.

"God sees idolatry as kin to being married (to us-- as his Bride) and our sleeping around with other lovers and leaving Him in the cold. From my perspective, this broke my heart completely. When I read this, I wept for a great length of time. And if I am truly honest, I still do sometimes."

How Idolatry and Food Lust Impacted my Walk with Christ

At this point in my life, I had grown to really enjoy my relationship with the Lord, and this idolatry seemed to put a wall up between us. A wall, or line, in the proverbial sand between us. I felt like I had no control over myself, and I didn't! I needed the Holy Spirit to help me have self control.

I'd like to tell you that I am free from food addiction completely today, but it's a day-by-day journey. It grieves me when I have made a mistake, but I don't punish myself. I have learned to think about my emotions when I crave and take them to God. I have learned that the more I don't give my flesh what it wants, the more I can subdue it.

My Road to Transformation

Praise God, I am married today, so God brought me love, but even my husband doesn't fulfill all my longings. When I'm tempted to look to food for comfort, I think of how God sees it. I have learned to tell HIM that I want to eat something at a moment of temptation. I just confess it to Him, and He helps strengthen me. I also plant intentional scriptures in my heart to meditate on daily. Every time I choose to not give in to the flesh, I get stronger. I cannot take on shame; I just seek to lay down my flesh. This is always my goal and not live in self-condemnation.

Back and Forth & God's Hope to Redeem Me

As I was going through all of this with God in my walk, He saw how literally back and forth I was with it. I would go from tears to joy, from shame to victory, sometimes all in the same day. I never seemed to just stay one way or another. It was a constant battle. One day, I heard Him tell me that He wanted to redeem me. I wasn't sure what He meant because I was already a Christian, blood bought and saved! What was He talking about?

I went to the Dictionary. A very anointed book I might add. God speaks in definite and specific words, (sometimes new words to me) and I like to understand all the possible meanings, so I looked this word up.

What's Redemption?

Redemption defined is: An act of atoning for guilt, a fault, or a mistake, or the state of having atoned. An act or the state of being rescued. Repurchase of something sold, paying off, as of a mortgage, bond, or note.

"When you keep hurting someone that's dear to you, and they keep forgiving you, how would you feel about 'you' if you messed up again? How do you face them again? After the 25th time?"

Rahab Redeeming Women with a Past

 When you feel like you are at the end of your rope, redemption and rescue sound pretty good.

I thought about this again. I was saved! Why is He redeeming me again? Then His tender words came bubbling up. He told me, I was suffering. I was not forgiving myself. And when we don't forgive ourselves, it causes many more problems in turn. We know that if we don't forgive others, God won't forgive us, but what about not forgiving ourselves? I think that is exactly what He was trying to tell me.

I said I wasn't hanging around in shame, guilt, or condemnation, but I think I still was. He wanted to finally forgive me, but I wasn't allowing Him to. There was a River of His precious Blood waiting to cover my sin, but I was condemning myself. He says our focus should be that we (as believers) are clean before Him. He atoned for that, removed our obligation to repay our debt, and delivered us completely from it. Let's receive that from this post if nothing else. Let's heal.

"God sees you. His heart is moved by you. He doesn't want you to suffer anymore. Regardless of how you got there. His heart is for you. And He wants to redeem you, too."

Missing Blessings

Something else the Lord communicated to me was that we could miss out on His blessings for us if we don't forgive ourselves. This, my friends, is something I will look at closer from now on. I tend to look at those scriptures about forgiveness for others and not for myself. Sometimes we penalize ourselves at a very high price--unnecessarily. The Word of God really does deliver us because His Truth about who HE says we are will bring deliverance to our minds provided we simply believe it! Amen!

God redeemed me and my story. How? Well, I now have the pleasure of sharing with you via blog, You Tube, teaching, and training. When someone has made a lot of mistakes in life, they sort of have a good road map of what to do and not to do by personal experience. Maybe I'm a little hardheaded, I don't know, but God valued me, gave me a voice, and most of all loved me. I would have never asked for this, but in His grace for me, He gave me a second chance. This time, I get to help others have hope through my own mistakes. I cannot think of anything better than to help another person through what I've been through. It's a plan of redemption that only He could have worked out for me. Thank you, Lord.

"He helps us in all our troubles, so that we are able to help others who have all kinds of troubles, using the same help that we ourselves have received from God." 2 Corinthians 1:4 GNT

What is Your Past Like?

Whatever your past is like, God's grace is abundant for you. If you know Jesus, your past is covered in His glorious blood. His magnificent grace covers it all and you are a NEW CREATION when you accept His love for you. Hear that? We are NOT our past.

"This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" 2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT

Traditionally, the scripture mentioned above has always been a scripture quoted to anyone receives Christ for the first time. However, this scripture is actually saying so much more than that. I found this out personally. He has stood by me when I wouldn't stand up for myself. He is a God of second chances, and third chances, and unlimited chances. If He had a limit on chances in His book, then this writer wouldn't be here writing. He would have given up and forgotten me a long time ago.

New and Fresh Again

God is a beautiful God. I have wept much discovering this to be true. He takes what is messed up and forgives; covering our pasts with His precious blood, washing the faults away if we just ask Him to. Then, He makes all things new. Yes, He is the 'New Maker.' He makes something new and beautiful in exchange for our ugly, messed up, misshapen lives. However, we also must embrace change in this. His kind of change.

 "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9 NIV

Remember the woman in the beginning of the article? The one caught in adultery? Jesus told her to 'go and sin no more.' He didn't only tell her, He tells us all. He also told one man to "Go and sin no more or else something worse will happen to you." He was saying it to a man that he just healed. He was communicating that he shouldn't just want healing, but rather transformation. Transformation will ensure the healing remains!

It was for this freedom that Christ set us free [completely liberating us]; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery [which you once removed]. Galatians 5:1 AMP

Romans 6:16 tells us:

"Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living." Romans 6:16 NIV

What About Rahab?

This is why Rahab--our Biblical example of redemption--is a part of this whole scenario. Due to lack of space, I won't rehash the entire story. You can read it here in Joshua 2. She was a prostitute in Jericho at the time the Children of Israel were going around her city walls. Even though she was a prostitute, she was transformed. How do I know? Well, she helped hide and save the spies from Israel that came to scout out her town. She had great respect for the God of Israel and feared His Name. In return for her help, the Israelites saved her and her family from annihilation when God later demolished the city of Jericho.

You know what the redeeming part was? She went from prostitute to brave hero in one day! The Bible recounts her in the "hall of fame" for those of faith. (Hebrews 11:31) She is even included in the lineage of Jesus Christ. (Matthew 1:5-16) God redeemed her in a way she couldn't have possibly known when she did the righteous act, but today, she is immortalized as a great woman of faith. Her past did NOT dictate her future. She chose to change and from it, it changed her legacy and gave hope to countless more. Praise God!

Conclusion

So what will you do now that you know how God sees you and your mistakes? We CAN change, but it is a choice. Just like Rahab was once a foreign woman of the night, turned into a Biblical woman of faith, God also extends that same opportunity to all of us. We are just one right decision away from a turning point of redemption. Regardless of your mistakes, God can and will make something beautiful out of you and your life too when you turn to Him with all your mistakes, repent, and transform with Him.

Stay tuned for Part 2 in this series, coming soon.

If you would like to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you have come to the right place. If you want to know how you can walk with Jesus daily and grow in your faith in a new and rewarding way, check out the many blogs on how to hear the voice of God through journaling. It changed my life and I didn't even want to write at the time. It's funny how knowing the Savior changed that in me as well. I pray it helps you, too. Don't forget to check out our online store before you go!