Click here to listen to a special song about how God used Mary to bring the gift of Jesus!

In the song it says that Jesus brought hope, joy, and love! Come up with a motion for each of those words, hope, joy and love. Every time you hear them in the song do the motion!

Today we want to focus on a specific prayer. You can pray this now, or you can pray right before bed.

We know prayer can be hard sometimes because you have to be quiet and focus, but prayer is important because it is an opportunity for us to talk to God! There isn’t a right way to do this or a perfect formula, you are simply talking to God, giving Him praise, and asking for His help!

Use the prayer below as we continue to remember how Mary felt when she learned she would give birth to Jesus and how she chose to trust God even when she was scared!

God, help me to trust you. Remind me of all the ways you are faithful and loving and give me courage to trust you more. Amen.

Reminder, this week’s verse is “And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.” Luke 1:38 ESV

Make sure you have it memorized because when you go to Tsunami, if you can recite the verse from memory there is a special prize for you! You make get free pizza, you may get candy, or you may even get to play the game on stage!

GO MEMORIZE THIS WEEKS VERSE!!!

Wilmington- find Brett or Caroline TONIGHT and recite the verse!

Leland- find Matt on Sunday and recite the verse!

New Bern- find Jonathan on Sunday and recite the verse!

Joseph doesn't say a single word in Matthew's Gospel, but his actions speak volumes. When he discovers Mary is pregnant, he knows the child isn't his. In that moment, his world collapses. The woman he loved, the future he envisioned, all of it shattered by what appears to be betrayal. He has every legal and cultural right to expose her publicly, to protect his own reputation, to walk away.

But Matthew tells us something crucial about Joseph's character: he was "a righteous man." And here's what righteousness looked like for Joseph: he didn't want to disgrace Mary. Even in his pain, even with his world falling apart, he chose compassion over condemnation. He planned to divorce her quietly.

This is where the story gets interesting. An angel visits Joseph in a dream with an explanation that defies logic: "What is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

READ

Let’s take a moment to read Matthew 1:18-25:

“This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.’

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means “God with us”).

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.”

REFLECT

Let's be honest. This is a lot to process. Your fiancée is pregnant, but it's not what it looks like, it's actually God's doing, and you should move forward with the marriage and raise the Son of God? This requires a level of trust that goes beyond reason.

But here's what Matthew tells us: "When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him."

No recorded questions. No demands for more proof. No negotiating for a different assignment. Just immediate, radical obedience.

Joseph's obedience cost him something. It cost him his reputation. People absolutely talked about that pregnancy timeline. It cost him his expectations. He thought he was marrying a simple village girl, not becoming the earthly father of the Messiah. It cost him his comfort, having to flee to Egypt, live as refugees, navigate the unique challenges of raising a child who was fully human and fully divine.

But Joseph's obedience also positioned him to participate in the greatest story ever told. Through his willingness to trust God through circumstances that made no sense, he became the earthly father who would protect, provide for, and raise Jesus. He became the man who would teach the Son of God carpentry, who would show Him what faithfulness and integrity look like.

Sometimes God asks us to trust Him through circumstances that don't make sense. Sometimes obedience requires us to move forward when we don't have all the information, when our reputation might suffer, when our comfort is threatened, when the path ahead is unclear.

Joseph teaches us that obedience isn't about understanding everything, it's about trusting someone. It's about believing that God is good and His purposes are worth following, even when following Him is costly.

Think about it: Joseph could have said, "This is too complicated. This is too risky. This doesn't fit my plans." But he didn't. He chose to trust God's word over his own understanding. He chose to obey even when it was hard.

What's interesting about Joseph is that he's not impulsive. He's thoughtful, careful, "righteous." He's the kind of person who makes measured decisions. But when God speaks clearly, Joseph doesn't hesitate. He moves.

Maybe that's what makes his obedience so powerful. It wasn't based on emotions or impulse. It was based on a deep conviction that when God speaks, we respond. Period.

This Advent, as we prepare our hearts for God's love to be more fully expressed in our lives, Joseph reminds us that sometimes love requires obedience when things don't make sense. Sometimes expressing God's love means trusting Him with our reputation, our plans, our comfort.

Where is God asking you to obey even though the circumstances don't make sense? What step of faith is He calling you to take, even though you can't see how it will all work out? Joseph's example shows us that obedience in the dark—trusting God when we can't see the full picture—is often where the most beautiful parts of God's story unfold.

• When has God asked you to trust Him through circumstances that didn't make logical sense?

• What area of your life is God asking you to obey Him in, even though you don't have all the answers?

• How does Joseph's immediate obedience challenge the way you typically respond to God's leading?

PRAY

Father, we want to be people who trust You even when circumstances don't make sense. Give us Joseph's courage to obey immediately, his compassion to respond with grace, and his faith to believe that Your purposes are always worth following. Help us remember that obedience isn't about perfect understanding—it's about perfect trust in You. Amen.

READ

Joseph doesn't say a single word in Matthew's Gospel, but his actions speak volumes.

When he discovers Mary is pregnant, he knows the child isn't his. In that moment, his world collapses. The woman he loved, the future he envisioned—all of it shattered by what appears to be betrayal. He has every legal and cultural right to expose her publicly, to protect his own reputation, to walk away.

But Matthew tells us something crucial about Joseph's character: he was "a righteous man." And here's what righteousness looked like for Joseph—he didn't want to disgrace Mary. Even in his pain, even with his world falling apart, he chose compassion over condemnation. He planned to divorce her quietly.

This is where the story gets interesting. An angel visits Joseph in a dream with an explanation that defies logic: "What is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

Let’s take a moment to read Matthew 1:18-25:

This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet[b] did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

REFLECT

Let's be honest—this is a lot to process. Your fiancée is pregnant, but it's not what it looks like, it's actually God's doing, and you should move forward with the marriage and raise the Son of God? This requires a level of trust that goes beyond reason.

But here's what Matthew tells us: "When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him."

No recorded questions. No demands for more proof. No negotiating for a different assignment. Just immediate, radical obedience.

Joseph's obedience cost him something. It cost him his reputation—people absolutely talked about that pregnancy timeline. It cost him his expectations—he thought he was marrying a simple village girl, not becoming the earthly father of the Messiah. It cost him his comfort—having to flee to Egypt, live as refugees, navigate the unique challenges of raising a child who was fully human and fully divine.

But Joseph's obedience also positioned him to participate in the greatest story ever told. Through his willingness to trust God through circumstances that made no sense, he became the earthly father who would protect, provide for, and raise Jesus. He became the man who would teach the Son of God carpentry, who would show Him what faithfulness and integrity look like.

Sometimes God asks us to trust Him through circumstances that don't make sense. Sometimes obedience requires us to move forward when we don't have all the information, when our reputation might suffer, when our comfort is threatened, when the path ahead is unclear.

Joseph teaches us that obedience isn't about understanding everything—it's about trusting Someone. It's about believing that God is good and His purposes are worth following, even when following Him is costly.

Think about it: Joseph could have said, "This is too complicated. This is too risky. This doesn't fit my plans." But he didn't. He chose to trust God's word over his own understanding. He chose to obey even when it was hard.

What's interesting about Joseph is that he's not impulsive. He's thoughtful, careful, "righteous." He's the kind of person who makes measured decisions. But when God speaks clearly, Joseph doesn't hesitate. He moves.

Maybe that's what makes his obedience so powerful. It wasn't based on emotions or impulse. It was based on a deep conviction that when God speaks, we respond. Period.

This Advent, as we prepare our hearts for God's love to be more fully expressed in our lives, Joseph reminds us that sometimes love requires obedience when things don't make sense. Sometimes expressing God's love means trusting Him with our reputation, our plans, our comfort.

Where is God asking you to obey even though the circumstances don't make sense? What step of faith is He calling you to take, even though you can't see how it will all work out? Joseph's example shows us that obedience in the dark—trusting God when we can't see the full picture—is often where the most beautiful parts of God's story unfold.

RESPOND

Take a moment to process what God might be leading you to do in light of what you read.

• When has God asked you to trust Him through circumstances that didn't make logical sense?

• What area of your life is God asking you to obey Him in, even though you don't have all the answers?

• How does Joseph's immediate obedience challenge the way you typically respond to God's leading?

REST

Take a moment to rest in God’s presence and consider one thing you can take away from your time reading, then close your devotional experience by praying:

Father, we want to be people who trust You even when circumstances don't make sense. Give us Joseph's courage to obey immediately, his compassion to respond with grace, and his faith to believe that Your purposes are always worth following. Help us remember that obedience isn't about perfect understanding—it's about perfect trust in You. Amen.