W.When my mom was nine months pregnant with me, she and my dad had to flee their country suddenly. A war had broken out and the fighting was spreading to the streets of the capital where they lived. Because of my dad’s work, he was targeted by the guerrillas. Our family was not safe.
I can picture my mother all those years ago, her belly full of innocent life, and I wonder how she felt. I imagine she was scared, unsure of how the situation would be resolved; I imagine my parents feeling lost in the chaos, confused by the way their plans to start a family had been upended. No one wants to become a refugee while nine months pregnant.
The story contained in Matthew 2:13–23 has become increasingly vivid to me over the years as I have come to see its similarities to the story my family lived. I can imagine Mary, holding her baby. I imagine the fear, confusion, and despair as they wonder about the implications of saying yes to what God had called them to do. Nobody wants to become a refugee with a baby. Matthew reminds us of Hosea 11:1 in the midst of this story, full of profound prophecy: “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.” Despite the dark and desperate circumstances, God had a perfect plan and purpose that would not be thwarted. While fleeing to escape a murderous dictator may not seem like God’s love in action, we see the larger underlying plans as they are fulfilled. The experience of Jesus’ family fleeing into the land of Egypt and then leaving it is the fulfillment of the same experience of Israel in the Exodus. Words that once described the experience of God’s corporate people now speak of the Messiah, the Son of God.
As I consider the plight of Mary and Joseph, and even my own mom and dad, I am reminded of the wisdom of the proverb: “A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord determines his steps” (Prov. 16:9, CSB ). We make plans, we think we know how God will move, but only He truly knows the steps we will take. Sometimes those steps take us to a comforting and familiar place, and sometimes those steps take us away from the only home we know to a new land where we will come to know God as our true and only comfort. My parents were able to settle into a new home in a foreign country. They were able to raise their daughters to know and love Jesus. Mary and Joseph were able to resurrect Jesus himself and join God’s story of rescuing his people, fulfilling a long-awaited prophecy, and emerging from that faraway land to establish a new and eternal kingdom. During this season, I am once again amazed at the way God has woven the threads of his unfolding plan, from generation to generation.
Kristel Acevedo is an author, Bible teacher, and director of spiritual formation at Transformation Church outside of Charlotte, North Carolina.
This article is part of The Eternal King arrives, a 4-week devotional to help individuals, small groups, and families navigate the 2023 Advent season . Find out more about this special issue that can be used in Advent or any time of year at http://orderct.com/adviento.
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