joseph didn't know.

There are few things in the world as interesting as the birth of Jesus Christ. 
If you've ever stopped by this web log before, you know how I feel about this.
I write about it all the time. 
Last year, the year before, and the year before that.


It's my hope and prayer this topic never becomes mundane and never gets lost under the tree. That it will never get stuck in the chimney and it will always, always serve as a reminder of the hope and the joy that came...

Christmas comes each time this year. 

And each time this year Mary, the mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, gets some serious attention from the public. This attention is not without warrant. All good mothers need their proper props. Mary is no different. 

However, where’s the love for Joseph in all of this? Trust me, I know he had ZERO percent involvement in the birth of lil’ baby Jesus, but there’s not a song out there called, “Joseph, Did You Know?” My guess is that Joseph had even less of an idea about things than Mary did!

Let’s break it down.

Here’s this dude, just a regular ole dude “pledged” to marry a gUrl, I’m assuming, he barely knows.  One night an angel rolls in and is all, “Listen. Listen. Listen. Listen. Go ahead and take Mary home as your wife. For real. NBD. It sounds crazy, but the Lord’s got it figured out.”

 One Gospel tells us that Joseph considering quietly divorcing Mary. 

Another barely mentions Joseph.

My brosef and his wife just had a baby a few months ago. On more than one occasion he expressed excitement and joy over the birth of his son, but he was also scared—like most dads. Dads want to provide. Dads want to protect. Dads want to know the child is their child! Surely Joseph felt all of these emotions and more. 

Surely Joseph sat down Mary at one point and said, “Real talk, who’s baby is this?”

Or maybe I’m wrong. 

Maybe Joseph was more than just a regular dude. Maybe Joseph was chosen in conjunction with Mary— as a team. Maybe the Lord knew that the two of them together could handle this. 

I mean, I don’t know! Just like Mary didn’t know. And Joseph sure as hell didn’t know. I guess it doesn’t matter. They had faith. They trusted the Lord and they did what they were told. 

And it turns out, the Lord was right.

He did have things under control. 

He had a plan— a plan to bring one child into the world to save everyone. 

Even Joseph.

Who totally didn’t know.