Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. 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.”
A special request
December 23
Read: A selection from Matthew 1:18-25
Listen:
Is it hard or easy for you to stay quiet for a long time? For most of us, it’s pretty hard. There are so many things to talk about!
Joseph could have said, “No way! I’m not going to marry her anymore. Even though I love Mary, I want to have a normal life. I don’t want to be the adoptive dad of the Son of God. That’s weird. People will think I’m weird.”
But he didn’t.
Joseph said, “Yes, I’ll marry her. I’ll help raise the Son of God. I’ll let people think I’m weird.”
Joseph cared less about what other people thought and more about what God thought. He cared more about Mary and less about himself. And because of that, God gave him a pretty cool part in God’s story. God used Joseph to raise Jesus. Joseph got to teach Jesus how to use a hammer and build a chair, how to read the Bible, and how to love other people. Joseph got to be Jesus’s dad.
Wonder:
What things did Jesus learn from Joseph? What can you learn from Joseph?
Pray:
God, Joseph reminds me that you can use me in amazing ways when I let you. What part do you want me to play in your story? Amen.
This devotion is part of
The Jesse Tree Story:
A Family Advent Devotional
Each devotion in this family Advent devotional invites you into the story of someone on Jesus’s family tree. These devotions will show young children how God was preparing for Jesus to be born across many generations. Each story pairs with a symbol you can hang on your own Jesse Tree.
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