Reason #340

I listened to the radio as I got ready for work this morning. The deejay read a fictional letter that Joseph (of Mary & Joseph) wrote to his mother. A letter that expressed his thoughts and feelings about this baby Jesus that was going to be his son. A letter that explained how it all started and why he had made the decisions he made. And as the letter was read, I thought about how often Joseph is overlooked. We don’t find out much about him, but he plays such a big role in this whole redemption plan. He was given a huge assignment. He was to take care of the woman he loved who just so happened to be carrying the Savior of the world. And, the job didn’t stop there. He was to be a father to this very baby as well. A father to a child that wasn’t composed of his DNA. And so Joseph had to trust in this whole plan, too. He had to have full faith to carry out his actions. He could have thrown his hands up in frustration and walked away. He could have said no. No one forced him to go through with this. But Joseph was a man of great character, obviously a determined and wise person, and so he faithfully performed the task that God had entrusted him with.

 

Mary, pregnant, went to visit family. Three months passed and she returned looking a little different. Three months he waited at home for her. Three months, he anticipated her return, I’m sure. And when he saw her, for the first time in months, I wonder what went through his mind as he noticed a slight bump on her young frame. Don’t you think his heart sank? Don’t you think he wanted to fall to pieces? How could she? Why? Everything was messed up now. Everything was out of order. This wasn’t part of their plan. They had been planning for marriage, not for a baby. This wasn’t right.

 

Talk about a life interruption, right? Like the saying goes, “A baby changes everything.” And this baby was changing everything. Don’t you know Joseph had plans. He was engaged to the woman of his dreams. I bet he thought about how exciting this new venture was going to be as a husband. I’m sure he was looking forward to all the things that marriage brings, imaging and maybe even planning for their future. Next thing he knows, his soon to be bride is expecting. A baby?! And it wasn’t his, either. So I can imagine how shocked he was. I wouldn’t have been surprised if he felt a little disappointed, too. Because I bet this wasn’t one of those things he had imagined quite yet. I bet he saw his dreams and plans fading away as the realization of this surprising news sank in. Not only was he taking on the responsibility of a wife, which I’m sure he had come to terms with, but now he was going to be responsible for a baby, too. This wasn’t his choice. This wasn’t even his doing. But sometimes in life, the decisions of others have a significant impact on us whether we want it or not. Mary had agreed to do this. Mary didn’t consult with Joseph before. She didn’t sit him down and go through a list of pros and cons before deciding whether or not she’d carry this baby. She accepted the job willingly and now Joseph had to decide what he was going to do.

 

And it’s in those life interruptions, those moments when we just want to fall apart and think we couldn’t possibly be more hurt or discouraged, that God is doing something big. There’s a reason He allows our lives, our perfectly crafted plans, to be interrupted. Sometimes, He has to change things around so He can do something even better than we considered. And that’s exactly what He was doing. Two people, who I have to believe were probably terrified, were getting their lives interrupted in a big, big way. Their plans were not going to play out as anticipated, however, God was going to do something even more incredible.

 

So Joseph had a choice. God, being a God of truth, shed light on the situation for Joseph. He asked a big thing of Joseph. But God doesn’t ask big things of those who aren’t capable of doing them, and He knew Joseph was the man for this job. So Joseph was going to have to trust Him. Joseph was going to have to lay aside his own plans and desires and submit to God’s will. If God was going to use Joseph to help carry out this redemption plan, there was going to be no room for selfishness, only obedience and faith. And so Joseph did it. An upstanding man, and he laid aside his own plans and comfort to care for her. To take her as his wife. To walk with her through the next 6 months of her pregnancy. To tend to her, provide for her, keep her safe. And he was there for her, as she laid in a stable, giving birth to the Messiah. I bet he held her hand, encouraged her, wiped the beads of sweat from her brow as she labored. He stuck in there. Through the gossip, the judgmental looks, the fear, the difficult moments, he didn’t give up. And God used this life interruption, this event that probably seemed quite scary and uncertain for 9 months, to bless not only a set of new parents, but all of humanity. God put their plans on hold so He could do something unimaginable and do something we couldn’t do for ourselves.

 

And so our lives are interrupted. Sometimes we don’t understand why. Sometimes we don’t like it. Sometimes it’s not even up to us. Interruptions can be scary, upsetting, discouraging. They can seem hopeless, humiliating, beyond repair. And we wonder why. Why it has to go this way. Why our plans have to be placed on hold. But clearly, as we see here, when God’s plans collide with ours and cause an interruption, it’s so that He can do something better. When our lives are being placed on hold, when we aren’t getting to act out our plans as desired, it’s because He’s working to do something incredible. We might not see it at the moment. We may have to wait months or even years, but we can trust that God will only interrupt to save us. And that’s what He did with Mary and Joseph. Children He loved dearly, ones He found favor with, and so He interrupted their lives to save them. More importantly, He interrupted their lives to save us. And I’m so grateful for that. I’m grateful that He’s done the same for me, too. I don’t know about you, I don’t know if you’re life has ever been interrupted, but my biggest interruptions, the ones I wasn’t initially happy about, turned out to be the biggest blessings and my greatest sources of joy. And, I bet if you were to ask Joseph, he’d tell you that he was glad God did it that way. I bet he’d tell you that he wouldn’t have changed it for the world. I’m glad God loves us that much to intervene, to interrupt. We serve a God who saves, and it often takes an interruption for Him to do exactly that. So be thankful, praise Him during life’s interruptions, and find comfort knowing that it’s in those times He’s working and moving to do mighty and wonderful things for us.

 

#340- Because He interrupts to save us!

 

“Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,because he will save his people from their sins.” – Matthew 1:20-21