Joseph, the Contented One

I love this image of Joseph, freshly awakened and ready to obey the Lord's command. I found the image here.
Annunciation to Joseph by LDS artist Joseph Brickey, 2000.

Read: Matthew 1:18-25

I like Joseph. In my head, he was a quiet thinker. He was happily content. He was the kind of guy that kept his nose clean. He was responsible. He was dependable. When we’re introduced to Joseph, things are going pretty well for him. He is able to make a respectable living working with his hands as a carpenter. He was soon-to-be wed to Mary, a chaste and God-fearing young lady in the village. Before long, God would surely bless them with children to run and laugh around their happy home. Life was good.

Until it wasn’t.

His beloved fiancé…was pregnant? Who was the father? What should he do – expose her? divorce her?

He must have wrestled for hours over where it all went wrong and what he should do about it until finally – mercifully! – Joseph fell into what I imagine to be a hard-won sleep.

In the wee hours, Joseph finally lay sleeping quietly. It was then, as Joseph was still, that God whispered through Gabriel. He spoke to Joseph’s fears. He answered Joseph’s groanings that were too confused – too hurt – for words. He calmed the chaos that robbed Joseph of his prior contentment. And in response –

“When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him.” (v 24)

As you navigate this second week of the {chaotic} Christmas season, begin by pondering what has robbed you of contentment during past holiday seasons? Is it the hustle and bustle of making lists and checking them twice? Is it holiday entertaining? Is is the constant strain from an overly committed calendar? Is it crowded stores? Financial stress? The self-imposed pressure of making this the “best Christmas ever?” Joseph’s contentment was found in living in obedience to God’s Word. What about yours?

This week, prioritize being still with God daily. Spend your time with Him listening more than speaking. And then, like Joseph, obey.

Drawing Near

I feel closest to God when my life is a catastrophe. While I long for more peaceful times during a crisis, for an immediate end to the struggle, I yearn to experience God’s close, caring presence that seems nearest to me during a catastrophe. It’s like a spiritual Catch-22. It doesn’t seem I can have the nearness without the catastrophe.

James begs to differ.

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. – James 4:8a

“This isn’t a God-thing. This is a human-thing,” James says. 

Miss Dorothy Levitt, first British race car driver, comfortably behind the wheel in the early 1900's.
Miss Dorothy Levitt, first woman British race car driver, comfortably behind the wheel in the early 1900’s.

When life is easy, I take the driver’s seat. I’m as happy is Dorothy Levitt (pictured above) behind the wheel. Before long, however, I get distracted. At best, I veer off the narrow road. At worst, I crash. Severed steering wheel in hand, I stagger back into His presence, dazed and confused. I draw near to Him more like an accident victim seeking a medic than a child drawn to her loving Father.

With James’ perspective, I can see that it isn’t the catastrophe that brings God’s Presence to me. The catastrophe brings me back into God’s Presence.

PONDER: When do you feel closest to God? What changes would allow you to experience that closeness all of the time?

PRAYER: Father, please forgive me for taking the driver’s seat in my life. I want to give You back Your rightful place behind the wheel. I want to snuggle up next to you on the front seat. Help me to learn to draw near to Your Presence more often in the peaceful times during my journey of life.