The warnings of God in dreams, visions, and spoken to the heart of man, can often be the defining moment of a person's life of obedience or disobedience with consequences. To not take God's warning seriously, is failing to save your own life or the life of those you travel with. To not heed to the voice of God is to fail to heed to truth and it will cost you, but if it is the will of God, he can propell you to leave as he did Lot the Nephew of Abraham out of Sodom and Gomorrah. Was Joseph and Mary in Sodom and Gomorrah, no they were in the peaceful town of Bethelehem when the wise men found them. The wise men were warned in a dream to go another way home. Actually the other way home may of been even shorter. Yet no doubt as the wise men traveled word spread of the new born king as it did as they left the palace. Joseph had knowledge of the Wise Men dream perhaps, but that not what trigger him to leave and go to Egypt. God warned him in a dream to not to return to Nazareth until King Herod was dead for he sought the young child's life.

He rose and took the child in obedience to God. He already obeyed God once by taking Mary has his bride to Bethelehem. Not consumating the marriage tell after the child was born. Now he was told to go to foreign land and wait. This recorded event was consider prophecy because of a verse in Hosea. How is it prophesy. Hosea and Genesis is to separate events and both had come to pass. What it means is prophecy of bringing God's people out of Egypt had happened more then once, but it was assurance that God would bring Jesus back to Israel. Only proof if God has spoken it once He can be said again in prophesy. Yet we must be warned that if God say it God mean it. God will not leave His Son in exile, God will not leave us in exile. God will not allow us to go into the wilderness without going back to the promise land.

I can not imagine Mary reaction to this decision, but she is now the wife of Joseph and by Israel law must obey him. I can not imagine if she wondered if it take forty years in the wilderness as it did Moses, or a short trip through the desert like it was for her people as they returned from exile at the time of the Babylonians. Whatever the case, Mary went with Joseph and stay in Egypt until news of received Herod was dead. Now was the trip necessary would King Herod really seek to kill baby Jesus. That is tomorrow lesson. Yet what we learn today is obedience to God despite our own understanding is necessary for survival and tomorrow we will learn why. Obedience requires us not always to see the full picture like in the story of Joseph in the Old Testament in Genesis. He obey God despite his circumstance even down to his behavior. He gained the palace. Can you have the palace and be in disobedience, David lost the palace for a time because of sin and regained with loss of loyalty to only some of his people. We will loose some friends through disobedience but gain others because of God grace in their own life.

Dear Heavenly Father, your grace is sufficient. You protect your people when they can not see the danger that is coming. Thank you heavenly Father your grace is suficient for your warnings are from heaven above, by your Spirit through dreams, through visions and through our heart and mind. Let us yield to your will in Jesus precious name, Amen.

Continual Scripture Study for Devotion: Hosea 11:1 KJV When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.

Genesis 46:4 KJV I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.