A little discussed part of the Christmas Story is Joseph’s dilemma with Mary becoming pregnant before they were actually married. Maybe that would be totally ignored in our culture today but it was different 2000 years ago and particularly in the Jewish culture.
What Was Joseph Thinking? (Let’s read the story)
Matthew 1:18–21 (NLT): “18 This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.
20 As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
How embarrassing! The whole town will know (according to the culture and customs of the time) that Joseph either had cheated and slept with Mary before their marriage or worse maybe Mary had slept with another man. Then Joseph had a dream and had the faith to believe it was from God. He went ahead and married Mary. He did the right thing no matter what others might think.
I don’t know about you but I can have a tendency to protect my self image and might question whether or not I can trust the dream. Do we miss the most important God opportunities because of concerns about what others might think? I have done so in the past.
We live in this “cancel culture” time where social media, national TV media, and other opinion shaping media try and silence all discussions around miraculous faith. People that don’t want the truth of Jesus to shine a light on their thoughts, affairs (sic), or desires to steal their fun and, unfortunately, miss out on the chance of a lifetime. Of course the real truth is, the one and only begotten Son of God, Jesus, has the ultimate answer for any one of us but we miss it when we manage our self-image in a way we think others will approve of.
How about you, will you enter into a 2020 Christmas with the faith of Joseph, believing God is still doing miracles and wants to do one for you, and in you?
After a scary and challenging year, what would you like God to do for you this Christmas? I believe, together with you, that this could be the year God wants to do a miracle for you. Will you, by faith, trust in God and not be swayed by what others may think?
Starting a new venture, a new career, step back and do a fun work that you feel passionate about, or whatever else you may be hesitant to do because of fear of failure or what other people may think. Dare to be different, separate yourself from the herd, step out and go for whatever you have always dreamed about doing. THIS IS YOUR YEAR, IT IS YOUR TIME, DON’T MISS IT!
A 2020 Merry Christmas,
Larry Anderson
Professional Life Coach 