Melodic Mondays: Joseph’s Lullaby by MercyMe

6 Comments

Gosh, I love this song. It’s just so beautiful and sweet and important, because I feel like, when it comes to the Christmas story, a lot of people concentrate on Mary, or the Wise Men, or the Shepherds (who are all totally deserving of their fair amount of attention, don’t get me wrong). But it seems to me that we often forget just how big of a part Joseph played, and just how amazing of a man he must’ve been. I mean, to begin with, his fiancé got pregnant, and he knew that baby wasn’t his. In that culture, he would’ve been fully within his rights to have Mary killed, and even in ours, he could drop her faster than you can say “Christmas star.” But before he even knew the full truth about Jesus, Joseph determined to break up with Mary quietly, without any drama, to keep them both from embarrassment and her from death.

And then after all that... I mean, just because an angel appeared to him and explained why and how all this was going down doesn’t mean it was easy-peasy from there. I mean, I’m sure there were moments where he felt blessed to have such an amazing privilege. But you also have to consider that his whole future was radically changed from that moment on, and that he would have to play earthly father figure to the Son of God. Like, just take two seconds and think about that. Just... wow. Every aspect of that situation had to be mind-blowingly overwhelming, not to mention a little bizarre, but Joseph believed it and accepted the responsibility anyway.

And obviously, we can’t know if this is what Joseph was actually thinking as he held Jesus for the first time, but if nothing else, it causes us to just stop, take a second, and consider how things might’ve looked from Joseph’s point of view.

So what’s a favorite Christmas song of yours? Any underdemeciated Christmas characters you can think of? Leave me a comment and let me know!

6 comments:

Jameson C. SmithDecember 14, 2015 at 8:31 PM
This is one of my favorite Christmas songs! I agree; Joseph is often overlooked, but was given such a grand opportunity. I love the way the song explores how he might have felt.

AnonymousDecember 17, 2015 at 6:04 PM
Oh my gosh, this is beautiful! :') Wow, I've never really thought much about how Joseph felt . . . Wow. :') kaldjfkal. I never thought of these things! XD <3 What a beautiful song, as well. <3 That is just gorgeous! :') <3

Hmm, my favourite Christmas song would be Mary, Did You Know? (I love Pentatonix's version). But I also love O Holy Night. Have you heard either of them? :D

This was so beautiful!
Emily GDecember 22, 2015 at 6:47 PM
Wow, that IS beautiful. And I totally agree with what you said about Joseph being overlooked. I heard a song recently that mentioned the fact that Mary and Joseph both knew that her baby was not his, and still he stuck with her and they got through it. And even though the angel confirmed to Joseph that the baby was indeed what Mary said it was, it still couldn't have been easy for him to accept that. Not to believe it, but to really accept that his fiancée was pregnant (not to mention HOW it happened to her and WHO that baby is) and how hugely that would change their life together. And I've always admired Mary and thought about what kind of a person she must have been for God to trust her with carrying Jesus, but lately I've been thinking about Joseph too and the person he must have been to be trusted with being a husband to Mary and a father to Jesus.
The whole story is just so beautiful. There's such a magic that comes with the Christmas story, that to me nothing else matches. I honestly love it so much.
Have you ever seen the movie The Nativity Story? Bible movies aren't really my thing for the most part (I know, that sounds really bad, but I would much prefer to read them), but I really enjoy watching that movie every year. I think it's a lovely adaptation of the Christmas story, and I love the way Mary and Joseph are portrayed.