Shownotes
Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy
Welcome to Day 202 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.
This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom
Christmas Courage: The Story of Joseph #2
Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 202 of our Trek, and yesterday we started on a series of stories that we will study between now and Christmas to learn about some of the key players in the Christmas story. It is my hope that we will learn from these stories that bring hope to the world, not only during Christmas but each day of the year. Each story will cover two days, so for today, we will finish our story titled 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. We are coming to the end of another busy week but one that has been rich and satisfying. This term that I use frequently does not mean that everything is going splendid or as planned but that life is an adventure and we should enjoy all aspects of it, even the difficult times.
This week we packed up the containers of caramel corn and got them sent off to their intended destinations. I had to make some additional batches of caramel corn to complete what we needed, so we made a total of 18 batches so far this year although I do make a double batch in each pot. If I calculated properly that would equate to nearly 150 cups of popped corn and 10 cups of various types of nuts. My favorite is with almonds. It is the making of memories that makes the time extra special, but let’s move on down our trail for today.
As mentioned on yesterday’s Trek 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 #2
I will re-read the passage from yesterday to set the continuation of our story today. This passage is 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,[b] 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.
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God gives us the courage to overcome our doubts and fears.
We can only imagine how Joseph must have felt when he found out that Mary was pregnant. His natural response would have been that she had been unfaithful to him. He knew the child was not his. She must have been unfaithful. What emotions do you think he would have?
Shock, disappointment, embarrassment, sorrow, anger…Probably a mixture of all. Yet Joseph’s character enabled him to keep a rein on his emotions. His love for God and for Mary compelled him to seek a way to protect her. You know the scripture says in 1 Peter 4:8, “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.”
And also in Galatians 5:22-23, “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”
Joseph faced down his own emotions and courageously chose to protect Mary. Can you imagine rumors that must have spread through the community? The neighbors would have thought that they had broken the law. Obviously the neighbors thought that they were having a sexual relationship.
Regardless of what others say or think, we must do what Joseph did. It is always the right time to do the right thing.
God gives us the courage to face our own doubts and fears and also the rumors of others.
The third point I want to explore with you in this courageous story of Joseph is…
3. God gives us the courage to face the future.
It would take unrelenting courage to deal with the life that Joseph had to face.
In the case of Joseph, he was given a vision – a dream to help reinforce his faith. He knew the neighbor’s opinion of him would change. He knew the rumors would be flying. But he also knew that God had spoken to him in a special way. The scriptures say, “As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream.”
Does God always give a vision to people? No. It does not appear to be frequent today since we have the full revelation of Jesus Christ in God’s Word. But sometimes He does. Sometimes God will give you a vision. Does God always give a vision to people? No. It does not appear to be frequent today since we have the full revelation of Jesus Christ in God’s Word. But sometimes He does. Sometimes God will give you a vision. Sometimes He will speak to you in a dream. Sometimes He will lead you to a verse in the Bible and show you how that verse applies to your situation. He does not do that every time, but sometimes He does. But you know what He will always do? If you are Christian, if you have accepted Jesus as your Savior, if you have the Holy Spirit living inside you, He will never, never, never leave you or forsake you. He will always be there. That is a promise.
Hebrews 13:5 – Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
This fact gives me the courage to face the unknown as described in Romans 8:31. – This fact gives me the courage to face the unknown a. As described in Romans 8:31. – What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?
When we face doubts, when we face fears, when we face an uncertain future, we are tempted to avoid the wilderness. We like our comfort zones. If we are approaching an area of the unknown, we try to find another way around or to make a U-turn to avoid it. We are afraid of the wilderness. There might be Giants there. There might be bullies there. There might be rumors and teasing. There might be hardships and struggles. But it is only by a journey through the wilderness that we will reach the Promised Land. And if we make the journey, God will be with us. Think of what Joseph had to endure and remember:
- God gives courage to ordinary people like you and me and Joseph.
- God gives the courage to face our doubts and fears.
- God gives the courage to face the future.
- Trust in God – believe in Him. No matter what you are going through He will be there with you.
What a marvelous story of courage that we find in this ordinary and humble man, Joseph. Dare to be a Joseph. Dare to be ordinary but good. We can be courageous and remain good in the face of hardships, ridicule, and slander. We should all endeavor to be like Joseph in our lives. Tomorrow our story will switch to another ordinary person in the story called Christmas Hope: The Story of Mary. You won’t want to miss it, so 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 hope in the midst of despair.
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!