20 … an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to embrace Mary as your wife, for the One conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and embraced Mary as his wife.

— Matthew 1:20, 24

… an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the Child to kill Him.”So he got up, took the Child and His mother by night, and withdrew to Egypt

— Matthew 2:13-14

“Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted over the earth.”

— Psalm 46:10

15 From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,

17 so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.

— 2 Timothy 3:15-17

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, mercy and love from Christ to you.

If we’ve ever felt the prompting form the Holy Spirit, don’t ignore it. The whisper that told us to call a certain friend at just the right moment actually kept us from a bad decision. The Spirit always know when we have to forgive, have to go, or have to stay. The voice of the Spirit guides us not with force but with faithfulness. Let’s be honest it’s not always easy to hear the voice of the Spirit because life is loud, our thoughts get crowded, not every open door is from God, and not every closed door means stop.

This is why walking in step with the Spirit is so personal. It requires stillness. It requires Scripture and it requires surrender. Think about Joseph in the New Testament. One dream from God led him to take Mary as his wife. Another dream told him to fly to Egypt. He could’ve dismissed it. He could’ve overlooked it. But instead he trusted the guidance because he listened to God. The spirit gave Joseph no details, no explanation, just a direction and he obeys that voice.