Head: Know God's Word | Heart: Love God | Hands: Follow God's Way
Read Matthew 2
Head
At the beginning of this chapter, Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea. This was during the time that King Herod reigned and he became very angry when he found out the wise men were looking for baby Jesus so they could worship him instead of himself. King Herod instructed the wise men to find baby Jesus and to return to him to tell him Jesus’s location. After the wise men reached baby Jesus and it was time to leave, God appeared to them in a dream warning them not to return to King Herod. This was because King Herod did not actually want to worship Jesus like he told the wise men, but he wanted to hurt baby Jesus instead. God also appeared to Joseph in a dream instructing him to take Mary and baby Jesus to Egypt for safety. Once it was safe to leave Egypt, Joseph took Mary and baby Jesus to live in Nazareth.
Heart
That must have been scary for Mary and Joseph to find out that King Herod wanted to hurt baby Jesus. Instead of coming up with their own plan to try and protect Jesus, they waited and listened for God’s instructions. Since Joseph listened and did exactly as God instructed him to, they all remained safe. If Joseph had not listened to God and tried to do things his own way, King Herod could have found baby Jesus and hurt him as he intended. Do you ever find yourself wanting to ignore what God is instructing you to do? Sometimes it can be hard to be patient and trust in what God is calling us to do, but in the end, His plan is the best plan for our lives.
Hands
Take time to reflect on a time when you felt God calling you to do something. Did you listen or did you ignore Him? What was the outcome?
Prayer: Dear God, thank You for showing us how Joseph trusted in You and for showing us that good comes from following Your plan rather than our own. Help us to rely more on You and to better understand what You are calling us to do. When we face difficult times, help us to really listen to the instructions that You are providing.