Shownotes
Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy
Welcome to Day 201 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.
This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom
Christmas Courage: The Story of Joseph #1
Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 201 of our Trek, and for the past five days, we stayed in camp to dig up the nuggets of wisdom that are found in Proverbs Chapter 6. Now through Christmas, we will hike the Christmas trail to learn about some of the key players in the story. It is my hope that we will learn from these stories that bring hope to the world not only during Christmas but for each day of the year. Each story will cover two days, so for today and tomorrow our story is Christmas Courage: The Story of Joseph. These stories are adapted from lessons taught originally by Raymond van Plesten. If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen to them and read the daily journal.
We are recording our podcast from our studio at Home2 in Charlotte, North Carolina. On Wednesday, we were able to pick up Kip from his preschool and watch him until Chelimo was able to get off work. After that, we had our monthly dinner date with my sister Rebecca, and we enjoyed a meal and time of fellowship together. We both look forward to this time each month to be able to catch up and share. Granny was also able to attend a Christmas breakfast and enjoy additional time with Kip at his school on Thursday. It is important to take time from our busy schedules to enjoy life, relax, and reflect.
With Christmas quickly approaching, we will spend our time together reflecting on the true stories surrounding the original Christmas. Today we will start with our story…
Christmas Courage: The Story of Joseph
If you have seen the movie World Trade Center, you realize how courageous the rescuers were in the days following 9-11. The movie is about a team of rescuers who are searching for survivors in the rubble of the twin towers. The rescuers search through the rubble risking their own lives – they are men of courage – because at any moment the tangled mass of steel and concrete may collapse on them. The movie focuses in on one team of rescuers as they risk life and limb to save two firemen who were trapped in the collapse of the towers. The movie depicts the danger of the situation. The movie shows the risks of everyone involved. But the movie also shows the courage that everyone displays under life threatening conditions.
There is a story of courage that took place at the first Christmas. We often miss it because our focus is on a young mother and a baby. But the character I want us to focus on during today’s hike was in the story too. He heard firsthand that his bride-to-be was pregnant, and it was not his child. This was difficult for him to deal with, but he wanted to handle the situation properly. As he thought about what to do, he experienced a personal message from God because of the extraordinary event. He stood by the manger where the baby was laid. He provided protection for the mother and child during the early years of the child’s life. The man’s name, of course, is Joseph.
What can we learn from Joseph? Let’s read his story from Matthew [1:18]-25.
This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet:
“Look! The virgin will conceive a child!
She will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel,
which means ‘God is with us.’”
When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.
1. God gives courage to ordinary people.
In the midst of the story of the miraculous birth of Jesus, we find an ordinary man by the name of Joseph. Many of us don’t view biblical characters as ordinary, do we? Many times we attribute to them almost super-human powers. But folks, that is not the case. They were people just like you and me. They had problems, fears, doubts, and worries just like you and me, yet God is able to use them. In fact, that is a major theme of the Bible.
Look at how Paul states this fact in 1 Corinthians 1:26-29, “Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.”
Joseph was an ordinary man, but He was a man God could trust to be strong in the midst of crisis. He was strong and resilient enough to protect his family. Matthew says it this way, “He was a good man.” In other words, he was a man of honor. Did he have concerns? Yes, but he was a man, as the Scriptures tells us, that was “good.”
Let’s read the first part of this passage again.
This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.
Joseph was an ordinary man, yet he was a good man. What that means is that Joseph displayed moral courage.
Joseph displayed the character of God in his own life. That’s tough to do sometimes, isn’t it?
In the movie Cinderella Man, we meet a man like Joseph. It is a story that takes place during the Great Depression. The father is a boxer who has lost everything, and the family is starving to death. His son steals a loaf of bread to help his starving family. The father rebukes his son and makes him apologize to the storekeeper. This God-fearing father may not have been able to fill his family’s stomachs with food, but he was able to nourish their spirits. Joseph was a man like that. He was an ordinary man but a man with moral courage.
We have just gotten started on our hike for today, but tomorrow we will finish up the story of Joseph. As we reflect on Joseph, we see that he was ordinary but good. He was also a very courageous man that would have to remain good in the face of ridicule and slander. We should all endeavor to be like Joseph in our lives. Tomorrow we will learn how God helped Joseph and, in the same way, is here to help us. This is a great story. Encourage your friends and family to join us and then come along tomorrow for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy as we learn how to have a courageous Christmas like Joseph.
That will finish our podcast for today. Remember to listen to your daily dose of wisdom each day. Please share Wisdom-Trek with your family and friends through email, Facebook, Twitter, or in person so they can come along with us each day.
Thank you for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and most of all your friend as I serve you through the Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal each day.
As we take this Trek together, let us always:
- Live Abundantly (Fully)
- Love Unconditionally
- Listen Intentionally
- Learn Continuously
- Lend to others Generously
- Lead with Integrity
- Leave a Living Legacy Each Day
This is Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy Your Journey, and Create a Great Day Every Day! See you tomorrow!