Janet Dean & Rahab
Today my friend Janet Dean tells the story of her heroine:
Here’s Janet:
“Adelaide Crum, the heroine of my debut novel, Courting Miss Adelaide, possessed strength and courage to do what was right, no matter the cost. Her father left her mother when Adelaide was a baby. Her unhappy mother was unaffectionate and critical of her daughter, but Adelaide found solace in God’s love and in her church family. When Adelaide learns a group of orphans are coming to town, she sees this as her chance to mother a child. But rules prevented single women from having custody. The selection committee turns down her request for a child.
Adelaide suspects Ed Drummond of abusing Emma and William, two of the orphans in his care. Since Ed is a respected member of the community, her concerns aren’t taken seriously. When circumstances bring Emma into Adelaide’s home, the little girl’s behavior heightens Adelaide’s disquiet about what’s going on in the Drummond household. She investigates, incurring Ed’s wrath, but she won’t back down even though her actions risk her business and even her life. Through all her difficulties, Adelaide leans on God and never falters. In the end, she saves the children, gains true love and a family.
Numerous strong women come alive in the pages of the Bible, but I’m particularly drawn to Rahab, the prostitute in Joshua 2:1. Rahab faced great peril in order to save the Israelite spies sent by Joshua to search out the Promised Land. Rahab had heard how the Israelites’ God freed them from slavery in Egypt. She’d heard how their God parted the Red Sea and given them the towns across the Jordan. Rahab acknowledged God, saying to the spies: for the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above and in earth beneath.
When the king of Jericho sent word to Rahab to turn over the men staying in her house, she hid them on the roof among stalks of flax, and then told the king the men had left the city. After obtaining the spies’ promise to save her household when they returned to capture Jericho, she let them down by a cord through the window of her house built on the town wall. In the end, Rahab’s courage not only saved these men and her family, but her son Boaz is named in the lineage of Jesus. God uses those even with imperfect beginnings for His purpose.
My second book, Courting the Doctor’s Daughter releases May 12. Mary Graves faces supreme challenges as she battles for her adopted son. I hope you’ll look for Mary’s story on bookstore and discount store shelves. Thanks for having me today, Lyn! No matter the era or the circumstances, to raise children takes courage and strength. God bless loving mothers everywhere. Happy Mother’s Day! –Janet “
Same to you, Janet–Lyn
