• Facebook
  • Twitter

Dreaming Beneath the Spires

Anita Mathias's Blog on Faith and Art

  • Home
  • My Books
  • Essays
  • Contact
  • About Me

Matthew 2: 12-23, Matthew 3 1-6, Day 4. Jan 4th, 2011.

By Anita Mathias



Matthew 2

 13 When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.

And how can God break through to us with something so absolutely, totally alien to us, almost surreal that we might not be able to receive its wisdom even in our time of prayer? A dream is one way.


“Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”

Stay there until I tell you. Joseph is moving into a highly dangerous, tricky, smoke-and-mirrors situation in which you cannot take people’s words at face-value, and things are not as they seem. Being able to hear God’s voice is of crucial importance to him in this situation. What Moses told his people is even more true here, “They are not just idle words for you–they are your life. By them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”

Again God does often warn us of danger through premonitions of it.

How do we know if these premonitions are from God?

The more we hear and listen to his voice, the more we are certain that it is him. “My sheep hear my voice.” It’s probably an art, not a science. We learn by trial and error.


 14 So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, 15 where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

 16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:

 18 “A voice is heard in Ramah,
   weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children
   and refusing to be comforted,
   because they are no more.”

I love Matthew’s interweaving of ancient Biblical prophecy with the events of Jesus life. God’s protection and blessing over our lives and emotions is a very real thing. Who would have supposed that the carpenter’s child could escape the King’s designs?

It is wise to ask God for protection, and to rely on it.

 19 After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt 20 and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child’s life are dead.”

People who have a strong and distinct gift of hearing God’s voice hear it in various ways. I hear it as a clear (though not audible) inner voice, accompanied with a buzz of excitement, like an electrical thunderstorm in the brain, when it says something which delights me, or like a clear, definite fiat when it says something which surprises or saddens me.

Joseph obeyed the first time he heard an angel speak to him in a dream. And so, not surprisingly, he heard the angelic voice more and more. In dreams. If he had disobeyed, he would never again be sure of the voice of the angel was his own imaginings or indeed the voice of God.

On such small acts of obedience or disobedience destiny hinges.


 21 So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.

Though the great words which angels always speak is “Do not be afraid,” prudence is also a gift of God, and a gift of the Holy Spirit. Joseph is a mixture of one who hears God, and so can take great risks but also has natural prudence, which is the application of common-sense.

So when is fear, fear and when is it prudence? If we do not do the right thing or show kindness because of fear, then it is fear. If common-sense suggests the dangers of a course of action, and so we decide not to embark upon it, that is prudence.

Prudence judges when fear is fear (an irrational emotion) and when it is mere common-sense. To avoid a druggie’s alley after dark is prudence. To never travel to beautiful places because of the dangers is fear.

I tend towards fearlessness and am a natural risk-taker. Teach me sensible prudence, Lord.


Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, 23 and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene.

Joseph’s prophetic gift obviously operated through dreams. To be more aware of our dreams seems to be a commonsensical strategy for Christians.


 Matthew 3

 1 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 

The Kingdom of heaven has come near. These are wonderful words. And I believe it is ever coming nearer.

We can step into it at any time. And all it takes is repentance.

Repentance. Metanoia, a change of heart. You are going in one direction. You stop, turn 180 degrees, and go in the opposite direction. That is repentance.

Lord, please show me the areas of my life in which I need to turn around 180 degrees. I can’t do everything at the same time, so please show me just one or two. Thank you.


3This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah:

   “A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
   make straight paths for him.’”

What makes straight paths for God? I would say repentance, first and foremost, and then just the actual simple act of hewing paths for him. Paths of time. This is difficult in a world in which the addictions of cyberspace have been added to our previous busyness in meatspace. I set my timer to hear from God for half an hour a day, after an hour of study of scripture, and spiritual blogging (which I consider a spiritual discipline.) Is it easy? My iPhone summons me, my laptop summons me with its myriad siren calls—blog comments, emails, facebook. And then, we make our livelihood through a small publishing company, so our work world with its news and distractions comes to us through our laptops. It is not easy to make a straight path for the Lord, to have mind and heart still enough to hear him. It is nonetheless an immensely rewarding discipline. I often achieve it, and more often fail to. When I realize that I am too hassled and distracted to have my conscious and unconscious calm enough to hear God should he speak, and to be in tune with God, I do a “stop, drop, repent” routine. Lock my door, lie face down on my bed or carpet and quieten and align myself again. And it is amazing how much more productive the next hours are.

Over-busyness is one sure way for me not to experience shalom, and God’s presence. I must be careful not to fall into that trap this year.


 4 John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. 6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

Someone who lives in a radically different way attracts attention. Whereas I don’t feel called to radically different—I eat and dress and furnish my house more or less like other people, I hope my life with Christ has left its mark, and there are subtle differences, not radical ones. The blessing promised to Abraham was that he would be a blessing. That is something I want to be true of me—to be a blessing to my family, friends, and those who spend time with me.

More from my site

  • Let me be singing when the evening comes       Let me be singing when the evening comes
  • Tasting the Goodness of God in the Land of Motor Neurone Disease: A Guest Post by Michael WenhamTasting the Goodness of God in the Land of Motor Neurone Disease: A Guest Post by Michael Wenham
  • Decembers in Gay Bombay: (An Excerpt from my Memoir-in-Progress, “I Lift up my Eyes to the Hills”)Decembers in Gay Bombay: (An Excerpt from my Memoir-in-Progress, “I Lift up my Eyes to the Hills”)
  • 365 Project–Our cold white ducks in white snow, and our garden in snow365 Project–Our cold white ducks in white snow, and our garden in snow
  • Martin Luther didn’t say that, did he? Yes, he did!Martin Luther didn’t say that, did he? Yes, he did!
Share this...
Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter

Filed Under: Matthew

« Previous Post
Next Post »

Sign Up and Get a Free eBook!

Sign up to be emailed my blog posts (one a week) and get the ebook of "Holy Ground," my account of working with Mother Teresa.

Join 642 Other Readers

Follow me on Twitter

Follow @anitamathias1

Anita Mathias: About Me

Anita Mathias

Read my blog on Facebook

My Books

Wandering Between Two Worlds: Essays on Faith and Art

Wandering Between Two Worlds - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Francesco, Artist of Florence: The Man Who Gave Too Much

Francesco, Artist of Florence - Amazom.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

The Story of Dirk Willems

The Story of Dirk Willems - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk
Premier Digital Awards 2015 - Finalist - Blogger of the year
Runner Up Christian Media Awards 2014 - Tweeter of the year

Recent Posts

  •  On Not Wasting a Desert Experience
  • A Mind of Life and Peace in the Middle of a Global Pandemic
  • On Yoga and Following Jesus
  • Silver and Gold Linings in the Storm Clouds of Coronavirus
  • Trust: A Message of Christmas
  • Life- Changing Journaling: A Gratitude Journal, and Habit-Tracker, with Food and Exercise Logs, Time Sheets, a Bullet Journal, Goal Sheets and a Planner
  • On Loving That Which Love You Back
  • “An Autobiography in Five Chapters” and Avoiding Habitual Holes  
  • Shining Faith in Action: Dirk Willems on the Ice
  • The Story of Dirk Willems: The Man who Died to Save His Enemy

Categories

What I’m Reading

Childhood, Youth, Dependency: The Copenhagen Trilogy
Tove Ditlevsen

  The Copenhagen Trilogy  - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Amazing Faith: The Authorized Biography of Bill Bright
Michael Richardson

Amazing Faith -- Bill Bright -- Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft
Stephen King

On Writing --  Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Acedia & me: A Marriage, Monks, and a Writer's Life
Kathleen Norris

KATHLEEN NORRIS --  Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk


Andrew Marr


A History of the World
Amazon.com
https://amzn.to/3cC2uSl

Amazon.co.uk

Opened Ground: Poems, 1966-96
Seamus Heaney


Opened Ground: Poems, 1966-96 
Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Archive by month

INSTAGRAM

anita.mathias

Writer, Blogger, Reader, Mum. Christian. Instaing Oxford, travel, gardens and healthy meals. Oxford English alum. Writing memoir. Lives in Oxford, UK

Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford # Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford #walking #tranquility #naturephotography #nature
So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And h So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And here we are at one of the world’s most famous and easily recognisable sites.
#stonehenge #travel #england #prehistoric England #family #druids
And I’ve blogged https://anitamathias.com/2020/09/13/on-not-wasting-a-desert-experience/
So, after Paul the Apostle's lightning bolt encounter with the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus, he went into the desert, he tells us...
And there, he received revelation, visions, and had divine encounters. The same Judean desert, where Jesus fasted for forty days before starting his active ministry. Where Moses encountered God. Where David turned from a shepherd to a leader and a King, and more, a man after God’s own heart.  Where Elijah in the throes of a nervous breakdown hears God in a gentle whisper. 
England, where I live, like most of the world is going through a desert experience of continuing partial lockdowns. Covid-19 spreads through human contact and social life, and so we must refrain from those great pleasures. We are invited to the desert, a harsh place where pruning can occur, and spiritual fruitfulness.
A plague like this has not been known for a hundred years... John Piper, after his cancer diagnosis, exhorted people, “Don’t Waste Your Cancer”—since this was the experience God permitted you to have, and He can bring gold from it. Pandemics and plagues are permitted (though not willed or desired) by a Sovereign God, and he can bring life-change out of them. 
Let us not waste this unwanted, unchosen pandemic, this opportunity for silence, solitude and reflection. Let’s not squander on endless Zoom calls—or on the internet, which, if not used wisely, will only raise anxiety levels. Let’s instead accept the invitation to increased silence and reflection
Let's use the extra free time that many of us have long coveted and which has now been given us by Covid-19 restrictions to seek the face of God. To seek revelation. To pray. 
And to work on those projects of our hearts which have been smothered by noise, busyness, and the tumult of people and parties. To nurture the fragile dreams still alive in our hearts. The long-deferred duty or vocation
So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I have totally sunk into the rhythm of it, and have got quiet, very quiet, the quietest spell of time I have had as an adult.
I like it. I will find going back to the sometimes frenetic merry-go-round of my old life rather hard. Well, I doubt I will go back to it. I will prune some activities, and generally live more intentionally and mindfully.
I have started blocking internet of my phone and laptop for longer periods of time, and that has brought a lot of internal quiet and peace.
Some of the things I have enjoyed during lockdown have been my daily long walks, and gardening. Well, and reading and working on a longer piece of work.
Here are some images from my walks.
And if you missed it, a blog about maintaining peace in the middle of the storm of a global pandemic
https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/  #walking #contemplating #beauty #oxford #pandemic
A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine. A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine.  We can maintain a mind of life and peace during this period of lockdown by being mindful of our minds, and regulating them through meditation; being mindful of our bodies and keeping them happy by exercise and yoga; and being mindful of our emotions in this uncertain time, and trusting God who remains in charge. A new blog on maintaining a mind of life and peace during lockdown https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/
In the days when one could still travel, i.e. Janu In the days when one could still travel, i.e. January 2020, which seems like another life, all four of us spent 10 days in Malta. I unplugged, and logged off social media, so here are some belated iphone photos of a day in Valetta.
Today, of course, there’s a lockdown, and the country’s leader is in intensive care.
When the world is too much with us, and the news stresses us, moving one’s body, as in yoga or walking, calms the mind. I am doing some Yoga with Adriene, and again seeing the similarities between the practice of Yoga and the practice of following Christ.
https://anitamathias.com/2020/04/06/on-yoga-and-following-jesus/
#valleta #valletamalta #travel #travelgram #uncagedbird
Images from some recent walks in Oxford. I am copi Images from some recent walks in Oxford.
I am coping with lockdown by really, really enjoying my daily 4 mile walk. By savouring the peace of wild things. By trusting that God will bring good out of this. With a bit of yoga, and weights. And by working a fair amount in my garden. And reading.
How are you doing?
#oxford #oxfordinlockdown #lockdown #walk #lockdownwalks #peace #beauty #happiness #joy #thepeaceofwildthings
Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social d Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social distancing. The first two are my own garden.  And I’ve https://anitamathias.com/2020/03/28/silver-and-gold-linings-in-the-storm-clouds-of-coronavirus/ #corona #socialdistancing #silverlinings #silence #solitude #peace
Trust: A Message of Christmas He came to earth in Trust: A Message of Christmas  He came to earth in a  splash of energy
And gentleness and humility.
That homeless baby in the barn
Would be the lynchpin on which history would ever after turn
Who would have thought it?
But perhaps those attuned to God’s way of surprises would not be surprised.
He was already at the centre of all things, connecting all things. * * *
Augustus Caesar issued a decree which brought him to Bethlehem,
The oppressions of colonialism and conquest brought the Messiah exactly where he was meant to be, the place prophesied eight hundred years before his birth by the Prophet Micah.
And he was already redeeming all things. The shame of unwed motherhood; the powerlessness of poverty.
He was born among animals in a barn, animals enjoying the sweetness of life, animals he created, animals precious to him.
For he created all things, and in him all things hold together
Including stars in the sky, of which a new one heralded his birth
Drawing astronomers to him.
And drawing him to the attention of an angry King
As angelic song drew shepherds to him.
An Emperor, a King, scholars, shepherds, angels, animals, stars, an unwed mother
All things in heaven and earth connected
By a homeless baby
The still point on which the world still turns. The powerful centre. The only true power.
The One who makes connections. * * *
And there is no end to the wisdom, the crystal glints of the Message that birth brings.
To me, today, it says, “Fear not, trust me, I will make a way.” The baby lay gentle in the barn
And God arranges for new stars, angelic song, wise visitors with needed finances for his sustenance in the swiftly-coming exile, shepherds to underline the anointing and reassure his parents. “Trust me in your dilemmas,” the baby still says, “I will make a way. I will show it to you.” Happy Christmas everyone.  https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/24/trust-a-message-of-christmas/ #christmas #gemalderieberlin #trust #godwillmakeaway
Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Gratitude journal, habit tracker, food and exercise journal, bullet journal, with time sheets, goal sheets and a Planner. Everything you’d like to track.  Here’s a post about it with ISBNs https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/23/life-changing-journalling/. Check it out. I hope you and your kids like it!
Load More… Follow on Instagram

© 2021 Dreaming Beneath the Spires · All Rights Reserved. · Cookie Policy · Privacy Policy

»
«