Moving forward after a major hurt or disappointment is oftentimes a very difficult process. Sometimes it's difficult to move forward because of the pain of the past experience. Other times it is difficult to move forward because of the memory of how good things were before the major trauma. No matter what the situation is that makes it hard to move forward past a traumatizing event, we must get to the point that we undeniably say that forward is the direction that MUST be pursued.
Such was the case in the recorded events leading up to the birth of Jesus the Christ according to Matthew's account. In the gospel according to Matthew 1:18-25, a young man by the name of Joseph received some mind-blowing, life-altering information that likely would have any good man thrust into a position of defenselessness. Joseph had courted, proposed to, and become engaged to a young lady whom he loved. He and the young girl were to be married and as the story is recorded, they had not had sexual relations one with another, yet the girl was discovered to be with child prior to their marriage.
As a woman I cannot adequately understand exactly what young Joseph could have been going through in his mind, but I can imagine at the moment of receiving this knowledge he was struck with emotions that were traumatizing. He even said outright that he was not going to deal with going forward with the marriage. He had decided to "put Mary away silently." He had decided that forward was too great a pursuit. Joseph said a cessation of all present and future plans and courses of action with this particular woman was necessary and any attempts to go forward with her would be futile. I mean, would you blame him? Yet in verse 20- "while [Joseph] thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ". . .do not be afraid to take to Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and YOU shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins."
Joseph had been positioned by God to choose to go forward in expectation. Yet, his human frailty wanted so bad to press the proverbial eject button and be done with the matter. God from time to time may allow trauma in our lives to get us to the point that we stop depending on our humanly orchestrated plans and desires. Joseph and Mary had a good thing going. I imagine they had laid out plans for the wedding, where they'd live, they probably had even mapped out the timeline for their children-so that they could live their lives accoring to their plan. God, however always has plans for our lives that are greater than our own. Yet sometimes we may want to hold onto our personally devised and carefully considered plans more than seeking God for what God intends for us to do, become and accomplish. Sometimes the only way to get us away from our personal plans for us is through some traumatic means that makes our plans impossible to carry out. God may have allowed some life-stopping trauma in your life to get you to see that your plans are futile if not God directed. The event that has you stuck may be the event that is meant to push you towards an expectation of something greater. Maybe the place of desperation in your spirit is to point you to think it can't get any worse! Be not dismayed, whatever betide- God will take care of you; but YOU must choose to go forward. Press toward the mark for the prize in Christ Jesus and you may realize that the thing that caused you to be stuck was nothing compared to what God has for you in the forward mode. Go forward and see like Paul's encouragement to the Roman church- "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." Go forward in expectation and God may just do something totally unexpected!
