Brilliantly done! What a reminder... to obey even if we don't know what's going on and thank God that he worked everything out so perfectly; and for us. Thank you for th8s beautiful post!
This is beautifully written—rich, vulnerable, and pastorally powerful. You captured something Scripture actually emphasizes but we often miss: Joseph’s righteousness was not heroism or certainty, but costly obedience in the dark.
What struck me most is how clearly this reframes faith as guardianship, not glory. Joseph isn’t called to explain the miracle, command it, or leverage it—only to shelter it. That resonates deeply with Matthew 1:20–21: obedience precedes understanding, and trust is demanded before clarity arrives.
I also appreciate how this dismantles our modern obsession with platform, reputation, and visible success. Joseph’s faithfulness required him to live with suspicion, silence, and misunderstood obedience—yet heaven trusted him anyway. That’s a word many of us need.
Thank you for reminding us that righteousness has never been about control or public validation, but about staying close, staying available, and staying obedient when God’s work places us outside the lines we once thought defined faith.
What a blessing to get this! So glad of the work God has done in me and us toward guardianship and submitting to the bigger story! Merry Christmas, Dale!
Incredible. I literally have goosebumps. So many thoughts, good thoughts... but I find myself unable to articulate them for now. Just know how touching this perspective is, and I'm so glad you wrote it and shared it with us! Thank you!
This….🥹🥹🥹my response…indescribable tears of awe of the human tension through the journey of obedience, questioning, doubt, wanting to do the right thing, the honorable thing. Incredible mercy taking center stage. A divine gift & quality that’s so powerful it shatters earth & humanity in ways that are so gentle…a gentleness that perfectly depicts the majesty of our Creator. A mercy that overrides all that God ever put in place when He created Adam in his spiritual authority as a man, yet while it may appear like an overriding, in reality is God ordering & positioning it in a way He alone has seen it’s perfect place in this situation. A mercy & obedience that carried a weight necessary for Jesus, the One who created this entire universe to be the babe He chose to join the human race. A mercy that had visitors of ‘substance’ by earthly standards from the East coming to bow & worship the very One who held their breath in His hands. God’s invisible hand working yet deeply & truly present. God’s knowing understanding settled so gently yet powerfully over the human spirit that urges an incredible obedience to Him. An obedience that deeply trusts in the Sovereignty of God our Heavenly Father.
This is a heartfelt and imaginative reflection, well-written, but I would note that it reads Joseph through a modern emotional lens rather than the cultural and scriptural framework of his time. Joseph would have processed Mary’s pregnancy first and foremost as a Torah-faithful Israelite living within an honor-and-shame society, not primarily through internal psychological struggle throughout the pregnancy and birth.
Upon learning of Mary’s pregnancy, Joseph’s initial concern would not have been wounded self-identity or emotional betrayal, but how to act righteously within the Law while minimizing shame and harm both to Mary and to their families. Why? Because Mary has proven to be an honorable woman up to this point, and she clearly states how she became pregnant so he had no reason not to believe her. Not knowing God's plan yet, his deliberation, as Matthew records, centers on how to uphold Torah, preserve honor, and extend mercy in a way consistent with covenant faithfulness. His thoughts would have been on how to preserve honor while following Torah.
Joseph may well have experienced inner tension, but that tension would have been shaped by questions such as: How do I protect Mary from public disgrace? How do I act justly before God? How do I fulfill my responsibility as a righteous man? This is why Matthew emphasizes his intent to divorce her quietly, an action rooted in legal mercy, not emotional avoidance. Many, if not all, marriage contracts or covenants of that time and culture held clauses of separation should one or both parties violate the marriage contract.
Once Joseph received divine instruction though, his conflict of divorce or not would end. As a descendant of David, he would have understood the significance of what God was doing and his responsibility within it. From that point forward, understanding God's plan, he would not hesitate to take Mary as his wife, legally name the child to show adoption of the child before God, and protect the Davidic heir entrusted to him.
Matthew’s portrayal of Joseph is not of a man paralyzed by doubt, but of a tsaddiq whose righteousness is expressed through decisive obedience within God’s covenant order.
Brilliantly done! What a reminder... to obey even if we don't know what's going on and thank God that he worked everything out so perfectly; and for us. Thank you for th8s beautiful post!
Thank you, God alone! Blessings and may we submit to the bigger story!
This is beautifully written—rich, vulnerable, and pastorally powerful. You captured something Scripture actually emphasizes but we often miss: Joseph’s righteousness was not heroism or certainty, but costly obedience in the dark.
What struck me most is how clearly this reframes faith as guardianship, not glory. Joseph isn’t called to explain the miracle, command it, or leverage it—only to shelter it. That resonates deeply with Matthew 1:20–21: obedience precedes understanding, and trust is demanded before clarity arrives.
I also appreciate how this dismantles our modern obsession with platform, reputation, and visible success. Joseph’s faithfulness required him to live with suspicion, silence, and misunderstood obedience—yet heaven trusted him anyway. That’s a word many of us need.
Thank you for reminding us that righteousness has never been about control or public validation, but about staying close, staying available, and staying obedient when God’s work places us outside the lines we once thought defined faith.
What a blessing to get this! So glad of the work God has done in me and us toward guardianship and submitting to the bigger story! Merry Christmas, Dale!
Incredible. I literally have goosebumps. So many thoughts, good thoughts... but I find myself unable to articulate them for now. Just know how touching this perspective is, and I'm so glad you wrote it and shared it with us! Thank you!
Awesome, Megan! Thanks for sharing.
Beautiful just beautiful. Happy Birthday Jesus ✝️♥️🙏💃
This….🥹🥹🥹my response…indescribable tears of awe of the human tension through the journey of obedience, questioning, doubt, wanting to do the right thing, the honorable thing. Incredible mercy taking center stage. A divine gift & quality that’s so powerful it shatters earth & humanity in ways that are so gentle…a gentleness that perfectly depicts the majesty of our Creator. A mercy that overrides all that God ever put in place when He created Adam in his spiritual authority as a man, yet while it may appear like an overriding, in reality is God ordering & positioning it in a way He alone has seen it’s perfect place in this situation. A mercy & obedience that carried a weight necessary for Jesus, the One who created this entire universe to be the babe He chose to join the human race. A mercy that had visitors of ‘substance’ by earthly standards from the East coming to bow & worship the very One who held their breath in His hands. God’s invisible hand working yet deeply & truly present. God’s knowing understanding settled so gently yet powerfully over the human spirit that urges an incredible obedience to Him. An obedience that deeply trusts in the Sovereignty of God our Heavenly Father.
An obedience that moved heaven & earth…literally.
Crazy story! Thanks for reading my thoughts about it! Blessings RRC!
This is a heartfelt and imaginative reflection, well-written, but I would note that it reads Joseph through a modern emotional lens rather than the cultural and scriptural framework of his time. Joseph would have processed Mary’s pregnancy first and foremost as a Torah-faithful Israelite living within an honor-and-shame society, not primarily through internal psychological struggle throughout the pregnancy and birth.
Upon learning of Mary’s pregnancy, Joseph’s initial concern would not have been wounded self-identity or emotional betrayal, but how to act righteously within the Law while minimizing shame and harm both to Mary and to their families. Why? Because Mary has proven to be an honorable woman up to this point, and she clearly states how she became pregnant so he had no reason not to believe her. Not knowing God's plan yet, his deliberation, as Matthew records, centers on how to uphold Torah, preserve honor, and extend mercy in a way consistent with covenant faithfulness. His thoughts would have been on how to preserve honor while following Torah.
Joseph may well have experienced inner tension, but that tension would have been shaped by questions such as: How do I protect Mary from public disgrace? How do I act justly before God? How do I fulfill my responsibility as a righteous man? This is why Matthew emphasizes his intent to divorce her quietly, an action rooted in legal mercy, not emotional avoidance. Many, if not all, marriage contracts or covenants of that time and culture held clauses of separation should one or both parties violate the marriage contract.
Once Joseph received divine instruction though, his conflict of divorce or not would end. As a descendant of David, he would have understood the significance of what God was doing and his responsibility within it. From that point forward, understanding God's plan, he would not hesitate to take Mary as his wife, legally name the child to show adoption of the child before God, and protect the Davidic heir entrusted to him.
Matthew’s portrayal of Joseph is not of a man paralyzed by doubt, but of a tsaddiq whose righteousness is expressed through decisive obedience within God’s covenant order.
Thank you for sharing, Alyson.
Joseph died before Jesus had done the first miracle of turning the water into wine.
That's why Mary came to Jesus at the wedding.