The First Family on Mission
Who was the first family on mission? If you said, “Joseph and Mary,” you’re correct. In the midst of a threat on Jesus’ life (Matthew 2), and the deaths of other babies in Bethlehem, God directed Joseph through a dream to protect Jesus and move to Egypt.
This was not the first Joseph to experience pain and dream in the Bible. After his mother Rachel died in Bethlehem giving birth to Benjamin (Genesis 36:16-22), older brother Joseph had dreams of greatness (Genesis 37). He was sent to Egypt too, not at the hands of Herod, but at the hands of envious brothers. He was sold into slavery, imprisoned, and eventually rose to the heights of power. God used him to save his siblings from a famine.
When we think about being a “family on mission,” it doesn’t always mean service projects, block parties, and dinner groups. Sometimes it means making choices that not even our biological families can fully comprehend. We need a faith family to sustain us through the pain and tears of life as we attempt to follow God’s direction. The Old Testament Joseph traveled a lonely road. Joseph and Mary traveled with each other. Both had a living God who accompanied them. Only when looking back after following obediently can we see with both Josephs in Egypt, “What you intended for harm, God intended for good, that is, the saving of many lives.” (Genesis 50:20)