After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, because those who intended to kill the child are dead.” So he got up, took the child and his mother, and entered the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned in a dream, he withdrew to the region of Galilee. Then he went and settled in a town called Nazareth to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene.
Matthew 2:19-23
Dear God, I remember when my children were in grade school and I was unemployed. As. I prayed about job opportunities and what you had for us, one of the things that always stuck with me was where you wanted them. Where did. you want them to grow up, be in school, go to church, and make friends. They were as much a part of the decision as my wife and I were. And I’ll confess that, over the years, after we moved to this small town when they were in the fourth and first grades, I’ve wondered at times whether or not we made the right move. Was coming here what was best for them?
I finally got to a place where I just simply put my faith in you and decided that you would have closed the door or guided me in a different direction if this isn’t where you wanted all four of us. The path hasn’t been straight and there are a lot of circumstances in their being raised here that concern me. But did they need those experiences to develop something in them that I cannot see? Even if something looks wrong, is it exactly right? That’s where I putting my money through my faith in you. I’m betting that things have worked the way you ordained because 1.) I prayed to you that your will would be done in all of our lives over and over again and 2.) you will guide us all into your plan.
I say all of that because I see Joseph having to make a lot of decisions. In this passage he gets his third and fourth angel visits (1. Take Mary. 2.) Go to Egypt. 3.) Go back to Israel. 4.) Go to Galilee.) so at least he had some affirmation he was doing the right thing (although I still have to wonder how much doubt he still might have had with these visits coming in the form of dreams. But all of this–all of this—was for Jesus. This wasn’t about Mary. It wasn’t about himself. He did it all to keep Jesus safe. I wonder how much of this Jesus knew and how old he was when he knew it. I wonder how you used these years in Egypt to form Jesus’ s love for Gentiles and for the poor. A love for foreigners and those who feel out of place. A love for the lonely and the friendless because he had to make new friends at least a couple of times.
Father, thank you for the joy of learning to make decisions for the good of someone else (our children) even though it will cost us something. In this case, it cost Joseph convenience, reputation, momentum in starting/stopping/starting/stopping/starting his business, etc. But he did it for you. He did it for this boy. He did it for my Messiah. I hope I am man enough to make similar decisions.
In Jesus’s name I pray,
Amen
Emails to God 