Scripture: Matthew 1:19
“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.”
Have you ever been standing in a line somewhere — Costco, Target, the DMV — and suddenly had the overwhelming urge to just… abandon your cart and quietly slip out the side door?
Not in a dramatic way.
Not storming off.
Just a soft, subtle,
“Maybe I’ll just… not do this today.”
Most of us have had a moment like that — where we want to back out of something we willingly entered, simply because we’re overwhelmed or confused or just plain tired.
And honestly?
That’s why Joseph’s story feels so human.
Because Joseph is the person doing everything “right.”
He’s faithful.
He’s steady.
He’s responsible.
He’s the biblical equivalent of a good “church person” who pays his taxes early and never texts while driving.
And then life hands him something he has no framework for.
Mary is pregnant.
And he knows one thing for certain:
He is not the father.
In an instant, Joseph’s entire life script disintegrates.
His expectations for marriage, reputation, work, community — gone.
And his instinct?
The same instinct we have in aisle 7 at Costco:
“Maybe I’ll just quietly slip out the side door.”
No drama.
No public shaming.
No revenge monologue.
Just a humble, quiet exit.
And Matthew calls him righteous before any angel shows up to explain things.
That’s important.
Joseph’s desire to leave didn’t make him weak.
His confusion didn’t make him spiritually inferior.
His instinct to protect himself wasn’t sinful.
His honesty was part of his righteousness.
He was trying to do the most compassionate thing he could think of
while still being true to what he knew at the time.
And God meets him right there —
in the place where he’s already halfway out the door.
Which tells us something huge about the character of God:
God can work with the unfiltered version of us —
the confused, exhausted, overwhelmed version —
just as easily as (and maybe more easily than) the polished, “I’m fine” version.
Sometimes the most sacred moment in our faith isn’t the one where we’re strong or confident…
but the moment we admit,
“I don’t know what to do here.
I might be done.
I didn’t sign up for this.”
It’s in that honest pause — in our Costco-cart-abandoning moments — that God often whispers a different kind of direction.
Reflection
Where have you been quietly considering an exit this year?
A relationship?
A responsibility?
A role?
A storyline you didn’t choose and don’t feel equipped for?
Where have you thought,
“Maybe I’m not the person for this after all…”?
No filter. Just truth.
Practice
Write down one place where you’ve felt the urge to slip out quietly.
Then pray honestly:
“God, meet me in this place where I feel unsure.
If You have something for me here, show me.
If You’re releasing me, give me peace.
But either way — be with me in this unfiltered honesty.”
Joseph’s story reminds us:
God isn’t waiting for you to “get it together.”
God meets you where you actually are.
Grace and Peace,
Andrea