The Worker in Wood
This morning our pastor was speaking about expectations, specifically the expectations that both Mary and Joseph would have had if they had turned out to be an ordinary Jewish couple, betrothed to be married. Their expectations were not to be the reality that they lived. As he was speaking I thought about this story I had written several years ago. It kind of dovetails with the sermon so I thought I'd share it. The Worker in Wood Lovingly, he caressed the smooth surface of the oak. He had carefully cut it, shaped it, and planed it until it lay finished before him—the most beautiful cradle. It was fit for a king. Joseph remembered the stories of old, the story of Abraham sitting under the great oaks at Hebron when the Lord appeared to him. Joshua had prepared a memorial stone and placed it under an oak near the holy place to mark the covenant between Israel and God. An angel had presented himself to Gideon seated beneath an oak. Absalom had met judgment under an oak. Israel’s histor...