“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)
If anyone is an example of trust, it’s Joseph, the father of Jesus. I’m sure he read this scripture in Proverbs several times in his lifetime. He had a deep trust in God, which kept him strong when he was presented with complicated decisions and huge responsibilities. Joseph had decisions to make which affected the lives of Jesus and Mary.
Joseph was human and he became very perplexed and worried in first learning of Mary’s pregnancy. He probably prayed, asking God what to do, until an angel appeared to him in his dream, telling him to take Mary as his wife. Instead of trying figure out his own solution, he trusted God by obeying the angel.
At another time, Joseph heard an angel warning him to get up quickly, and take his family to Egypt. Traveling with a new mother and baby in the middle of the night, presented many challenges, and on top of that, Egypt was a very uncomfortable environment for religious Jews of the first century. In spite of it all, Joseph kept obeying.
Joseph’s faith was tested in ways that would challenge any intellect, since he had to make decisions that were contrary to the norms of his time. In his day, it was not normal to marry a pregnant woman, or as a monotheistic Hebrew, to live in Egypt, among a culture of idol worshippers.
The result of his diligent trust and obedience saved Jesus from Herod’s mass murder plot. With Mary, they created a peaceful, secure family environment to raise Jesus, despite living in an alien culture and a cruel period of history.
God’s greatest plan since creation, was the plan for salvation of the whole world, and Joseph was called to father, raise and protect the Messiah, who was born for that purpose.
Any average man, a foster or step father, who married into a situation like Joseph’s would be asking himself, “How did I get myself into this?” For Joseph, it was about doing what Proverbs says, trusting the Lord with all his heart, not leaning on his own understanding.
Joseph is considered to be the patron saint of all stepfathers and foster fathers.
For most of his life, Joseph must have felt like he was living outside the norm, compared to his piers who were living “normal” lives. I think we all face circumstances at some time, which make us feel like we are living outside the norm, but if we compare ourselves to others, it becomes harder to trust in God.
When God leads us to do something new, He doesn’t always reveal the details. Joseph went beyond the call of duty in fulfilling his role, becoming a loving father and an ideal mentor for Jesus. We may all know a man like Joseph, who is a great example as a stepfather, foster father, uncle or grandfather to someone, who became an admired mentor for a child.
God can accomplish anything without our help, but He gave us guardian angels and people to help us. He sends both to us at the right place and time to serve and fulfill a purpose.
Some of us can look back and see how God has led us down the right path after a confusing beginning. In some cases, we may never know the purpose for a certain sorrowful or confusing trial, but one thing we can be sure of;
God rewards those who diligently seek and trust Him.
There is an amazing true story of survival that I once read about. In 2015, a car lost control and turned over into an icy river in Utah. An 18 month old girl was in her car seat upside down, suspended above the frigid water for 14 hours. When police and fire fighters arrived, they heard an adult voice calling out from the car, “Help me.” Then they saw the little girl suspended upside down. Her mother had sadly died on impact, and no one could explain where that voice came from, or how that little girl survived for all those hours in the cold.
I’m sure a guardian angel was involved in that child’s miraculous survival, even though the remaining details may never be known.
As God used angels to guide Joseph throughout crucial moments, He helped him to do his part to protect and save the mother and baby he was responsible for.
There is no better example of trust and obedience than Joseph. The details of a situation may not always be revealed, but there’s no better place to be than in the center of God’s will, and like Joseph, only trust can bring us there.
There is deep peace in knowing we are in the will of God, and peace doesn’t mean the absence of trouble in our lives, but the presence of Christ and His angels.
Lord, just as you were pleased with Joseph’s trust and obedience, we pray we can imitate him. Help us to trust and obey, even when we don’t understand the purpose or details of whatever is happening in our lives. Amen