"Ah, you're the one with slow feet." There is a woman's group in the Philippines that gave me that name. Many years ago, on a mission trip, I was selected for dance instructions. The local dance involved hopping between long bamboo poles tapped in rhythm on the floor and each other. The goal was not to have your foot smacked between the poles. The assumption was made that since I was one of the youngest members of the visiting group, agility would be in my skill set. Alas, I'd never made a dance troupe or drill team, nor could I teach my compatriots "The Moon Walk." My teachers were patient but after several attempts I was released from the demonstration. I was embarrassed but apparently still loved. My Filipino friends loved me because of our common relationship with Jesus, not my dance performance.
“and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,”
Matthew 1:6 NIV
https://www.bible.com/111/mat.1.6.niv
At last, my blog journey through the sixth verse of every book of the Bible has arrived in the New Testament. I noticed that Bathsheba, one of just four women mentioned in the lineage of Jesus, is referenced by her relationship to Uriah, one of David's warriors sacrificed to cover the king's sin. The other three women are named but not Bathsheba.
David and Bathsheba conceived a child while her husband was off to fight war on David's behalf. Uriah died in battle orchestrated by David. After a period of mourning David married Bathsheba. The prophet Nathan confronted King David with his transgressions.Sadly, this unnamed child succumbed to disease. David and Bathsheba's future child was Solomon, the heir to the throne.
Later in her life, Bathsheba was instrumental in the "palace intrigue"which preserved the lineage of Jesus. One of David's many sons asserted himself as King even though David had made clear Solomon, Bathsheba's son, was to be Israel's next king. The prophet Nathan recruited Bathsheba to approach aged King David to inform David of the chaos in the line of succession. As a result of Bathsheba and Nathan's audience with David, Solomon's throne was re-established.
As I snooped the internet for information on Bathsheba, it surprised me that most sites spend time recounting David and Bathsheba's affair.. This indiscretion did ultimately lead to the birth of Solomon, God's choice for king. Yet didn't God use Bathsheba and her relationship to David to confirm the lineage of Jesus, my King?
Perhaps the world remembers us by our failures and indiscretions, yet I am reminded that God still sees potential in the future of a slow footed non-dancer! In this world, we may gain our names and reputations from failures and ill-chosen relationships. I rejoice today that God named me His own by His grace and choice, not my inadequacies, faults or embarrassments.
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