Lap 7
Back when my dad was a young buckin’ bronco, he raced dirt track stock cars. I have very faint memories of spending Saturday nights at the dirt track when I was little. Actually, those are some of my earliest memories I can recall. My childhood was built on dirt tracks on Saturday nights and NASCAR on Sunday evenings. That should tell you all you need to know about me, right there. I could tell you every NASCAR driver, their number, and their sponsor by age 8 (Dale Jarrett #88 sponsored by UPS. Mark Martin #6 by Valvoline). You get the idea.
My dad hung up the fire suit when I came along … Maybe he realized his daughter needed her dad in one piece or something, I’m not sure. But we would still go to get some of that motor oil and dirt in our lungs on Saturday nights just for good measure. And the sounds of engines revving would usually lull me to sleep in his arms by lap 7.
If you talk to anyone in motorsports, most will tell you that it isn’t the checkered flag that is the most anticipated – it is the white flag. In American motorsports, the white flag is waved to indicate to the drivers that they are entering the final lap of the race. The final lap. This is the time to give it everything you got. The final lap is not the time to slow down and say “whew! Well I came this far, I think I’m good”. Quite the opposite, actually. It is the time to rev the engine as hard as it’ll go and give it all it’s made of. Not a single motorsport athlete will ever say “Man, that was a great race. The car held beautifully. My pit crew was on top of it. And that last lap, you know, that’s when I really backed off and just coasted until the checkered flag. I mean, I lost the podium but hey, the rest of the race was great.”
No. The final lap is when you dig in. Grit your teeth. Pedal to the metal. And THEN when you cross the checkered flag, you know that you gave it all you had. But how many times do we just give up in that crucial final lap? How many times do we fall asleep in lap 7? We’re tired. We’re angry. We’re discouraged. We’re done. We take the foot off the gas and just coast.
Can you imagine if Joshua and the Israelites just stopped marching on lap 7? Oh, how different this story would read if they had given up! Because there was someone very important waiting on the other side of Lap 7 … her name was Rahab.
For Rahab, everything hinged on that last lap. In Joshua 2, probably a familiar story to most believers, we read about two spies entering the land that their army will soon overtake. They come to the house of Rahab, whom the Bible does not shy away from describing as a prostitute. So we immediately know something about her: She is known and valued for one thing only – her body. However, Rahab does the remarkable and proclaims faith in the one true God, hides the spies, commits treason against her own government, and then asks for her and her family to be spared when the Israelites command charge over Jericho.
Whew. What a resumé.
The spies tell her that she and her family will be spared from death due to her faithfulness … And then they leave.
So Rahab waits.
Can you imagine the anticipation during the days to come leading up to the charge of the Israelites? I can only conclude that she was probably creating a few sweat stains on her clothes. She just risked everything and these men just LEAVE?! And when Joshua and his army DID come and they didn’t charge the city with swords and weapons … but with marching in complete SILENCE, can you imagine what she was thinking then?
“I just put everything on the line for you guys and you’re overthrowing the city by burning a few calories and getting your steps in?? Are you kidding me??”
But let’s remember, the Bible says she had faith in the one true God. So we can assume that she trusted this army and their battle tactics. But don’t you know, when lap 7 of day 7 came, she was thinking, “Come on, boys. Don’t stop now. Give it all you got”. I imagine Rahab’s Lap 7 was a long lap … because everything hinged on that lap for her. Her LIFE hinged on that lap.
What do we know about Rahab? Just as the Bible holds no restrictions about making her known as a prostitute, the text is also very clear that she is a woman of faith. So much so that she is one of only TWO women listed in the Hall of Faith and one of FIVE listed in the lineage of Jesus. Yes, Rahab’s line is the line of Jesus. So let’s circle back to that original question - What if Joshua and his army stopped marching on lap 7? I don’t know about you but that question reads a little differently for me, now.
Joshua 6: 17 - 25 gives us the account of the destruction of the city of Jericho. Interestingly, it also gives just as detailed an account of the salvation of Rahab. There are 86 Hebrew words devoted to the salvation of Rahab. There are 102 Hebrew words to describe Jericho’s destruction. What does this tell us?
The salvation of Rahab was just as important as the fall of Jericho.
The salvation of a prostitute - God chose to give as detailed a salvation story as the fall of an entire empire.
What does this also tell us? God cares about lap 7. Your lap 7. Even when it seems like you are circling the same city over and over. Heartache, disappointment, loss, grief, anger. And He has a plan. It’s most likely a plan that you would never see coming. A plan that might make you cock an eyebrow or scratch your head. But that’s the beauty of God’s plans .. we aren’t meant to understand them. Because if we did, then there would be no need for faith.
Let’s get back to the army … I imagine Joshua’s men were starting to feel somewhat foolish about midway through. And that last lap was probably the hardest. I don't have biblical reference to back that up but if I was marching around an entire city I think I’d be tired, worn out, and exhausted.
But someone was waiting on the other side of that lap 7. That someone was Rahab. A woman who was used and rejected. A woman who was seen and valued for only one thing. A woman who was unclean and unfit to be married. A woman unworthy of motherhood. God said, “Oh no, sweet one. I choose YOU to be in the royal lineage of my only son”.
What would have happened if they gave up on lap 7?
I don’t know where you are in your march. You may have just finished your lap 7. Well done! Rest up and massage those feet. Because another march will come.
Maybe you just started on lap 1 and you are feeling strong and ready to face this race.
Maybe you have been on lap 7, circling round and round for what seems like an eternity. Sweet friend, don’t stop. God sees you. His presence is hovering over you. He has not left you. Keep marching. Someone is on the other side of your lap 7. Maybe it’s your children. Your siblings. Your spouse. Your friend. You don’t know who is waiting for you to complete that last lap, shout, and bring the walls down.
There is work to be done. So keep walking. Stay silent when you need to stay silent. Listen for God. And when He tells you to shout, you shout with all you got.
xx - LeAnn
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