Our Quiet Heroes

 A very good day to all,

 

And it has been.  After seemingly countless hours of waiting and watching, today we emerge as grandparents to our 4th little boy! YEAH!  

 

This week I want to give you one of J. John’s “Heroes of the Faith” with just a little twist to what’s on my mind right now.   I find myself comparing this hero to my son-in-law, Chris.

 

So first let’s have a look at Joseph.  Yes, you guessed right, this is not about anyone in the recent past, but of Joseph and Mary, of about 2100 years ago, or as is more often stated, “Mary and Joseph”.

 

J. John refers to him as one of the “Heroes in the Shadows”; and that fits perfectly with our new daddy, Chris.  

 

As we read in Matthew 13:55, Joseph was a carpenter. Chris uses his tools to create masterpieces in the IT world. In Matthew 1:19, we’re told that Joseph was a ‘righteous man’. Personally, I’ve always rejoiced that the description fits Chris as well. We know from the fourth chapter of Luke and the first chapter of John that Joseph was from Nazareth and little more. Chris is a local boy from a wonderful family right here in the Gold Coast where we live.   

 

What makes Joseph unique is not that he was handsome or rich but that he presented as a helper and enabler, albeit it from the shadows.  This he managed to do in the relatively male-dominated world of the Bible. If you think about all those so great men of the Bible, technically, they are not this one. For example, yes, Joseph did get a couple of messages from an angel, but only in a dream … nothing in-your-face personal like Mary did.  To our knowledge, Joseph didn’t write down anything, he was never quoted, and he got nothing published as did Mary in her famous, “Hymn of the Magnificent” (found in Luke 1:46-55).  This too, is exactly how our lovely Chris is: quiet and confident but just as happy to not be out there stealing the show.    

 

“Quiet Heroes” often rule, and with a strength that’s amazing, from the shadows.  Seldom front page but still vital.  They play their accepted secondary role with grace and charm. Another attribute of these heroes is a ’shielding’ role, that in the process creates a strength all it’s own. I’ve bumped up against strength in Chris on a couple of occasions when I got a little too involved in trying to run my daughter’s life even after she had left the nest. The experience left me a bit surprised, and at the same time profoundly proud of this wonderful man who had taken over my shielding role.

 

And lastly, both of these men have a strong supporting role. The Bible tells us there were many more children later on in Mary and Joseph’s life, and Joseph worked hard to take care of all of them, The last mention of him was when Jesus had supposedly gotten lost back at the temple. Joseph was there on the spot, looking for and finally finding his precious Son. A good father in every way.

 

Like Chris.

 

Heroes in the shadows rarely seek attention, and not surprisingly hardly ever get the recognition they deserve. But where would we be without them!

 

We’re looking forward to a fun-filled week, watching our little ‘Akachan’, as the Japanese call them (meaning ‘cute red thing’) fill in and blossom out to be all that God created him for.

 

Happy Trails,

 

Grandma Mae 


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