I was just reading Matthew 1:18-25 and my heart dropped when Joseph was contemplating divorce.
“8This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 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. 20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). 24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.”
Joseph was faithful to the law, but he also did not want to expose his wife to public disgrace; for although they were pledged to be married they had not yet consummated the marriage. Before their union, she had conceived a child. I could not imagine the stress they must have felt wondering how to deal with this situation. Amidst the circumstances, Joseph had in mind to “divorce her quietly”… when I read this I thought about how divorce would have affected Jesus’ life. Thankfully God divinely intervened and guided Joseph in what he should do.
Marriage can bring up quite a few complicated situations where a husband or wife may contemplate divorce. My husband and I struggled for years in the intimacy department; our sex life was lacking and we were not feeling fulfilled in our marriage. At different times we both contemplated divorce, but it was a fleeting thought, as God reminded us that He brought us together for His purpose. God gave us what we needed to stay together, and over time, as we grew closer to God, we grew closer to each other.
