Today we continue to think about Joseph. Yesterday we saw
that his first reaction was to quietly divorce Mary. God had different plans. “But just when he had resolved to do this, an
angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is
from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for
he will save his people from their sins.’…When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did
as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife” (Matthew
1:20-24)
In this painting by Domingo Martinez, we see the exhausted
Joseph and the angel. Sometimes God’s plan for our lives is very different than
what we expected. All this week we’ve seen various ways that has played out for
Israel, and for Joseph-and for us. For Joseph, this meant a complete change of
attitude and the willingness to accept Mary and her ‘shame’, including all the
gossip.
