Stress Test Devotional May 4
May 04, 2024
MATTHEW 1:20 | But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.”
But Joseph is encouraged not to abandon his plans. In a dream, God calls him back to his original commitment. He is instructed to marry his betrothed and to become her husband and the baby’s father. Sometimes the way forward in the kingdom requires us to return to and embrace earlier commitments, even when they have become complicated or difficult. Joseph is asked to trust that God has a greater purpose in what looks like a personal and social calamity. There will be more difficulties ahead, from the hard journey to Bethlehem to the travails of parenting under public pressure.
Have you ever been called back to keep a difficult promise and live a dream that seemed lost?
We are not called to live lives of mythical perfection, but to be faithful in our callings. Do you agree?
