I Heart Joseph Carpenter

It may be a bit far into January to wish everyone a Happy New Year, but as I’ve been absent from blogging since early December, I’ll do so now… I hope you all had a lovely time over Christmas. One of my favourite presents came from my younger brother. I’d been nagging him for weeks and finally on Christmas Day I opened my ‘I Heart Novak Djokovic’ t-shirt! ‘Bit of a cheesy present’ you may say, but as a huge Djokovic fan, I loved it!

 I spent New Years at my friend Katya’s, in England, with her family and our other good friend Coralie. I hadn’t been there v.long when talk turned to my favourite discussion – ‘Which Biblical character would you marry?’ I blogged a few months ago about how my number one choice is always Boaz. Whilst I still think Boaz would make a great husband, I’m starting to see more and more that Joseph Carpenter (Carpenter to separate him from Joseph dreamer…) would also be an excellent choice. 

After my last blog post centred around men not assuming responsibility, I thought it would be nice to write a post contrasting that. Joseph is often the forgotten character of the Nativity story, yet he played a major role in leading his small family. Hurt and humiliation must have occurred at news of Mary’s pregnancy, but he still tried to protect and look after her – 

‘Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.’ – Matthew 1:19

He trusted God and through the scandal took responsibility of Mary and the unborn baby Jesus, though he had no legal or social obligations to do so. He was committed to her and to bringing up the child as his own despite what other people in his community would have said.

When God spoke Joseph took action, he didn’t ask questions or make excuses, he didn’t wait to do it later. He was obedient to God and led his family with God’s will at the centre. 

‘An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” ¹⁴ So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt’ – Matthew 2:13-14 

Joseph, though he is mentioned little in the Bible, is a great example of Godly living, obedience, leadership and responsibility. 

‘I Heart Novak Djokovic’

New Years with Katya and Coralie

 

 

“The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands, it lays hold of me.” – Martin Luther

 

Inspirational women – Leah

Most of my friends will tell you that I love the Old Testament story of Ruth. Well, I now have a new, inspiring woman to add to my favourites list – Leah.  Over the past few weeks I’ve been studying the Biblical accounts of OT women and as a church we have also been reading through Genesis, so the timing was pretty good.

Why Leah? If I’m honest I’d have asked myself the same thing a few weeks ago. I had read/heard accounts of Leah on numerous occasions and never really found her story one to take inspiration from, until now. I had never fully seen her pain or her strength. Most women in today’s society when thinking of marriage imagine love, affection and companionship. Yet, for Leah she entered a marriage fully aware that her husband did not love her, worse still that he was deeply in love with her sister. Knowing this she did her best to try and gain Jacob’s love. Her marriage was full of jealousy and competition but God hadn’t left her.

Her story, at first seeming unrealistic to modern relationships, relates so well to women today. Feeling unloved by the world and working hard to gain feelings of worth and affection are everywhere, even in my own life. We think if we do this or that, change things about ourselves then we’ll gain something in return. We try to find our worth in relationships, career, academic or financial success and family approval instead of finding our worth in God.

When God enabled Leah to conceive, her reaction was ‘surely my husband will love me now…’ (29 v 32)  She continued to act in a similar way, hoping that with each new child she would gain her husband’s love. After her third child she says ‘Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.’ (v. 34) But Jacob continued to favour Rachel. Leah must have felt lonely and hugely unloved. She was trying to gain love and affection, trying to gain self-worth but was looking in the wrong place.

The inspiring thing about Leah comes in the next verse… ‘She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah.’ (v35)  She had failed to find love in the world but she realised that it is in God that true love, true affection and true worth can be found. She no longer needed to try and please Jacob instead she praised God for what He had given her.

 

 

The Deepest Root of Womanhood: Hope in God

 

‘  A Christian woman does not put her hope in her husband, or in getting a husband. She does not put her hope in her looks. She puts her hope in the promises of God. She is described in Proverbs 31:25: “Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.” She laughs at everything the future will bring and might bring, because she hopes in God. She looks away from the troubles and miseries and obstacles of life that seem to make the future bleak, and she focuses her attention on the sovereign power and love of God who rules in heaven and does on earth whatever he pleases. She knows her Bible, and she knows her theology of the sovereignty of God, and she knows his promise that he will be with her and help her strengthen her no matter what. This is the deep, unshakable root of Christian womanhood.’ – John Piper. ©2012 Desiring God