I started writing these for a friend who is going through a tough time. I wanted to give this person something to think about during the holiday season this year. I've been encouraged to share them. I'll catch you up here but stay tuned because there will be a new one every day from now until Christmas!
December 10 – The Census Announced
There are 15 days between now and Christmas. I often try to picture what life might have really been like for the One who went before me. What were Mary and Joseph doing on this day, thousands of years ago? I looked into how long it would have taken for Joseph and Mary to make the trip from Bethlehem to Nazareth. It's an 80 mile journey and some people guess that it would have taken a caravan of healthy young people about 4 days to walk it. With Mary pregnant and on a donkey, the journey could have lasted as long as a week for the two of them. SO, we know they haven't left yet. In fact, they're probably sitting around Nazareth right now as soldiers ride into town to tell the people that there will be a census.
Imagine it! You're sitting there making bread with your future in-laws and your pregnant fiancé and some soldiers come and tell you that you've got to get moving soon! Imagine Joseph's anxiety. So he turns to her dad, thinking "How am I going to tell him I have to leave and travel because I'm not from here?" Yikes! How are these two going to make it through this?! A journey of that length could have led to Joseph never coming back. What if he got killed or hurt? And now he has to leave a pregnant fiancé?! Little does he know, but she's going to insist on coming with him and THAT journey will be better than anything they could have ever envisioned!
December 11-Hands and Feet
Yesterday, we took a look at how Joseph might have felt when the soldiers arrived to announce the census. We considered what it might have been like for this man to think about the sudden change to his situation and we pondered what his feelings might have been regarding his next step. Today we are now two weeks from the arrival of the greatest gift known to mankind. Let’s take a look at what might be happening today.
Joseph has to find a way to approach Mary’s dad, Joachim, about the truth regarding the census. I imagine that stirring sensation in the pit of his stomach as he thinks about what to say. He looks across the table at Mary during a family lunchtime. Her snood and mitpachat cover her hair and he is left to gaze in wonder at her profile. He’s about to incite her father’s wrath. Joseph swallows and opens his mouth to speak. He describes his home city, Jerusalem. He remembers the peace on quiet nights and the way the dust filled the cracks in the home of his birth. As he tells Mary and her family what must be done, he watches their eyes grow wide. Oddly, Joachim does not reproach him. Mary’s father understands what it is like for a man in these times. He must do what is right and report to be counted.
Mary, on the other hand, stares at Joseph openly. She does not speak. There is a quiet reservation about her but Joseph senses determination. What is she thinking? How will they survive this? What if something happens on his journey? He would be leaving her alone and with a child that everyone already knows is not his. Joseph is torn between his duties as a man and his duties as a would-be father and husband.
How often are we torn between what is happening around us and what is happening in heaven’s realm? We often have trouble picking out the difference between the two. Sometimes, more often than we think, the two are inseparable. Heaven’s hand touches Earth daily. Now, unbeknownst to the world, heaven’s feet are about to grace it’s roads.
December 12 – A Mother’s Heart
Joseph has revealed what must be done and he has escaped angering Joachim. While we know we are simply imagining what “might” have happened, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to assume that Mary’s father would understand what another man has to do, especially if it meant being obedient to the law. But, what about Mary? What does she say about all of this?
They are walking, side by side, down the busy street of town. As they walk, they ignore the stares of the neighbors. “There she goes” they say. “What DOES he think he’s doing?” they whisper. The two of them, lost in their own thoughts, fail to notice this time. Joseph has been worried since yesterday. What is she thinking? Is she angry? Is she scared for him?
“Joseph, my place is with you,” she says. “You are my husband and it is only right that I be at your side.”
Joseph begins to protest but she stops in her tracks and turns. One look into her eyes and he knows there is nothing to be said on the matter. She has decided. Even in her current state she will go with him. Without another word, they turn towards her house to tell her family.
Mary stops on the threshold and touches the doorpost. Her delicate hand brushes the mezuzah and she quickly prays. As Joseph passes, he does the same. Once inside, Mary wastes no time telling her mother, Anne, she has decided to join her husband on his journey. There is ensuing protest and arguing. Each woman states her case and each woman is equally stagnant in her position. Joseph simply stands back, too smart to get in the middle.
Anne’s heart is breaking. Her daughter is in no state to travel. It is too soon to be letting go of her little girl. Anne can almost hear the childish squeals of laughter that once bounced off the walls of their home. As Anne looks up from the floor, she is taken aback by the woman standing before her. Mary is deep into her pregnancy and the look on her face is one of peace and determination. Anne falls silent. She knows it is time. She turns her head away in silent surrender. Mary breathes in a sigh of relief. Little does she know but, one day she will remember the anguish on her own mother’s face when she watches her Son begin His own treacherous journey. There is dust on Mary’s cheeks. There will be blood on His.
December 13- The Best Laid Plans
Everyone knows the plan and everyone seems to be on board. Today, as he works, Joseph is thinking about how they will travel, what roads they will take and how soon they should leave.
There is sweat in his left eye. It’s been burning since mid-day. Joseph continues to build on the house he is preparing for Mary and the child. He used to have friends who would stop and chat but no one seems to linger at the base of his ladder anymore. As he idly pictures the road between Nazareth and Jerusalem, a section of the straw Joseph was attaching to the roof falls to the ground. Suddenly all of his doubts and fears come crashing upon him. Joseph throws his hands in the air in frustration. “That’s it!” he says out loud. It’s proof! He isn’t fit to be a husband and father! What IS God thinking?!
Joseph climbs down off of his ladder and places his right hand on the Eastern wall of the house. His head hangs in defeat. All at once, his current situation becomes very real. He’s going to be a father! He starts to shake and he can feel his heart racing. He’s not ready for this! He thought he had at least a few years before something like this would be happening. God sure has strange timing. But, if there’s anything Joseph is learning, it’s that he has no clue what God has in store for his life. God only asks for obedience in this time. Faith? Joseph knows he doesn’t have enough of that. Some days he has a hard enough time believing that the sky won’t fall on his head. Other days, he wonders if he is hearing God right. Most of the time, he can barely manage enough strength to get out of bed. He’s definitely short on faith. But obedience? Right now he has obedience in abundance. He can listen and he can follow.
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