For a number of people I know, this Christmas will be a difficult time, a minefield of memories where some sight, sound, or smell will explode in heart-gripping emotion. This year for the first time, children will be without parents, parents will be without children, and spouses will be alone. What balm can we offer these wounded souls? What resources are at their disposal, not just to get by, but to fill their hearts with hope and joy?

I often think of Joseph’s part in the Christmas story and wonder how he dealt with his own crisis. Surely, when Mary “was found to be with child” his world came crashing down. His plan to quietly divorce her was right and wrong at the same time. As far as he was concerned, she had been unfaithful and that was that.

What Joseph needed was information, but he was kept in the dark. We wonder why the Lord did not fill him in before his heart was broken. God has his reasons and often requires us to walk by faith and simply trust him. Ultimately, God gave Joseph information when he needed it and not a moment before. On four different occasions the Lord spoke to him through dreams, providing three resources to get him through the crisis.

Assurance

The Bible says, “while he thought” about divorcing Mary the Lord appeared to him in a dream. In the Greek text the word “thought” is literally “in-spirited.” It denotes great introspection and internal agony. His tortured mind could find no rhyme or reason for this sudden disaster. It implies Joseph’s spirit was aching over what to do. At that moment, the Lord gave him exactly what he needed: assurance. “An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.’” (Matthew 1:20)

He learned that God had a plan and that he could rest in the knowledge that the Lord was in control. As Christians, we can always be confident that God’s will is good, acceptable, and perfect. It doesn’t mean it won’t be painful, but it does mean there is purpose in the pain.

Protection

The next time God appeared to Joseph he was instructed to get out of town. “Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’” (Matthew 2:13)

It must not have made any sense to uproot his family and flee into Egypt, yet God in his wisdom will allow a painful experience in order to protect us from a more devastating one. The Lord dwells beyond space and time and knows the end from the beginning. It may be that the pain suffered now is a “severe mercy” that shields from greater pain in the future. The Lord is our protector, and only eternity will reveal how often he saved us from ourselves and from more tragic circumstances.

God in his wisdom will allow a painful experience in order to protect us from a more devastating one

Direction

The Lord appeared to Joseph again in a dream and called him back to Israel, directing him to settle in Nazareth (see Matthew 2:19-20). When he needed assurance, it was given to him. When he needed protection, the Lord came through. And when he needed direction, the Lord guided his steps. These are the same resources that will get us through every crisis.

Joseph remains a great example to us in that each time the Lord spoke to him, he obeyed without question. Obedience is always the key to God’s blessing. When we resolve to follow the Lord no matter the cost we become involved in a much bigger picture. We get caught up in God’s story which will bring him glory and us eternal joy.