Any quirks in your household? I have one. It seems my washing machine is over-ambitious. When it finishes a load of laundry, it starts the cycle all over again, all by itself. I have about a 2 minute pause to race in and lift that cover. I won’t tell you how many loads of laundry have been washed and then rewashed before I caught on.

The term quirk usually applies to a trait of a person, and when I look around at my friends, I realize that many have their little lovable quirks. I suppose that I too am the bearer of a quirk or two. Even our Bibles are filled with stories of characters who most definitely have their own quirks. Yet each served a purpose in the divine plan. I enjoyed this story of a lesser known character.

A young girl named Rhoda is mentioned only once in the New Testament (Acts 12:12-15). She was a servant girl in the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark. Since she was referred to as a girl, she was probably about 10-12 years old. Now Peter had just been released from prison and went straight to the house of Mary where he expected his friends would be gathered, praying for his release. They were. When he knocked, it was Rhoda who answered. We’ll assume she asked who was there, for she heard and recognized his voice. Impulsive as a young girl might be, she left Peter standing out there and ran off to tell the others that Peter was at the door! It seems her elders thought she was just crazy. Peter was left to continue knocking.

Although young and excitable, Rhoda believed that God answered prayers. She had no problem believing that Peter was at that door. She persisted in telling the group that Peter was really there. To her elders she may have looked like a quirky crazy young maid. Looking back we see that she exemplified Christ’s words that his followers needed “childlike faith.”

What a marvel that our God loves us unconditionally, quirks and all!

Judy