“When Joseph awoke from his sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary as his wife.” Matthew 1:24
I have three special nativity sets that I put out each Christmas. One of them is a LLadro set which I purchased in Spain years ago, one is a Waterford set which I purchased in Ireland, and one is a white Lenox set which a member of the church gave us years ago. I love them all, but the Lenox set has always been my favorite.
Several years ago, as I was placing the Lenox set lovingly on the mantle, Joseph took a nasty fall and broke into pieces. I was devastated. Ashley was home, and she tried to smooth over the situation by saying, “Mom, don’t get so upset, Joseph didn’t really do anything anyway.”
Joseph is mentioned in the Bible only in respect to the events surrounding Jesus’ birth, flight to Egypt and return to Galilee. He was the husband of Mary, a carpenter, and the man who adopted Jesus and became his earthly father. He was also a man who obeyed the Lord without question.
I’ve had the joy of working with the foster ministry in a very small part as a sitter for adoptive families. I so admire the families, but like Joseph, the fathers in these families are so unselfish in their love for these children. Men can sire children, but that doesn’t make them a father or daddy. Love and commitment does. I admire Joseph for the way he raised Jesus and loved his family.
Christmas to me is this kind of love. In a sweet footnote to my Joseph nativity story, I must share the real meaning of Christmas and love. When rumors of my lost Joseph circulated among my friends, Jeanne, a sweet friend presented me with a wrapped package. When I opened it, there was another Lenox Joseph. I was so excited, but I never thought to ask her where she got it – I assumed ebay, Craig’s list, etc. It wasn’t until a year ago that I found out the real story. She had that same set, and she gave me her Joseph. She gave of her possessions out of love for me. That’s Christmas to me! Love you, Jeanne.