Christian Life Center

05/10/2026

02/10/2026

The emergency road trip to Egypt is over. Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, and Sully have reached safety.

From their perspective, the future remains uncertain, and probably frightening. Surely they are well beyond the reach of Herod, but perhaps a seed of fear remains in their hearts. Maybe they were never able to relax entirely until word reached them, several years later, that Herod had died. (If you want to see this story’s villain get what’s coming to him, search “how did King Herod die.” The answer isn’t for the squeamish.)

From our perspective, though, the future of Jesus and his family is certain. From Matthew 2:19-21, we know that several years after the family arrived in Egypt, an angel appeared to Joseph and let him know it was safe to return home. (I wonder if Joseph thought something like, What is it with all these angels … could I just get a simple text?!) And we know from Luke 2:40 that Jesus “grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.”

So if we already know all of this, what did we learn?

Road trips like this aren’t meant to prepare us for some theology test. Imagining what might have happened in a story from scripture is supposed to crack open our hearts and minds, hopefully so we can see our faith, and God, in new ways.

Still, a few themes emerged as we traveled. First and foremost, Joseph and Mary were real people with real hopes and dreams and emotions. We might be tempted to see them as saints, but let’s not forget that they were new parents navigating a confusing and dangerous world. Like countless others throughout history, they were forced to become refugees—but that not only saved them, it prepared them to raise Jesus, the only one who could truly change the world.

Second, faith makes us capable of amazing things. This whole story begins with a dream, which is something easily ignored or misunderstood. But Joseph sensed God in the dream, and Mary had the faith and trust to believe Joseph. Faith like that can make us brave. The comfortable thing for Joseph and Mary would have been to ignore the dream, stay briefly in Bethlehem, and then travel back home. Instead, they packed their bags and headed out on an unpredictable, open-ended adventure. For them, faith didn’t make their journey easier, but it did make it possible.

Third, tension is where spiritual growth tends to happen. At least that’s been my experience. When I’m pulled between faith and doubt, or between hope and despair, I usually grow. I think the same was true for Mary and Joseph. And like them, we have Jesus with us. So when life gets confusing, complicated, or even dangerous, let’s remember that God often meets us when we’re wrestling.

Oh, and one last point about Herod. As far as I can tell, he was as close to pure evil as an individual can be. But his story reminds me of what another Joseph says. “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” (Genesis 50:20). Herod’s evil plan was never going to overpower God’s good plan. Herod was powerful, but Mary and Joseph had “the zeal of the Lord Almighty” at their backs. And because of that, they were able to witness that the harm Herod intended was transformed into the saving of many lives. The saving of all our lives.

Thanks again for traveling with me on this road trip to Egypt, and let me know what lessons you learned—I’d love to hear!

I look forward to connecting again when our 2026 Lent series begins next week. And by the way, if you or someone you know would like a published devotional guide this Lent season, check out my new book Junkyard Wisdom Lent, which contains over forty entries paired with thought-provoking questions.

Roy

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Copyright © 2026 Roy Goble, All rights reserved.

Lead, follow, or go your own way

02/09/2026

Mary and Joseph stayed a few days in Pelusium, hoping they had escaped Herod’s reach. Mary appreciated a comfortable bed, Sully ate his weight in fresh greenery, and Joseph snuck away for an hour to visit a brew pub.

Their next job was to reach Alexandria, located on the opposite side of the Nile Delta from Pelusium. Joseph could find work there, and the family would be part of a welcoming community. The walk across the Nile Delta would have been beautiful, disorienting, and utterly foreign to Mary and Joseph. Having left behind the dry, empty silence of the Sinai desert, they entered one of the most densely populated, fertile, and culturally layered landscapes on Earth.

I wonder if it felt a bit like arriving in heaven. I don’t mean to compare the region to capital-H Heaven, but think about the imagery. Jesus’s family flees a brutal, dictatorial king across a hellish landscape, only to arrive in one of the richest, greenest, most luxurious natural landscapes in the world.

And it was populated by people from all walks of life and all corners of the world. They heard vendors shouting in Greek, Coptic, and Aramaic, plus Romans speaking Latin. They saw bright Egyptian linen sheets flowing in the wind, along with colorful fruits and vegetables. They walked through, over, and around canals and irrigation ditches brimming with water from the Nile. They spotted new bird species and beautiful flowers. They tasted new kinds of fish and garlic-grilled food, felt the texture of papyrus, and smelled incense from small shrines. Whether all of this felt like heaven to Mary and Joseph, it certainly did to Sully!

What a wondrous place it must have seemed to them. I can imagine Mary grinning at the abundance of goodness. God had delivered them, as promised. Jesus was safe, as promised.

As the family reached the outskirts of Alexandria, Mary and Joseph would have caught their first glimpse of the Pharos Lighthouse. As tall as a pyramid, it was one of the wonders of the ancient world, and so much bigger than anything they’d ever imagined back in Nazareth.

Then they entered the city. Alexandria was the second-largest city in the Roman Empire, and the Jewish Quarter must have been amazing. Dozens of synagogues. Huge neighborhoods where more than 200,000 Jews lived. Their own civic council and courts. It was a seat of Jewish learning, research, and study.

Best of all, it was welcoming. It was the community they longed for, their home away from home.

Mary and Joseph had been forced to flee to save their baby’s life, but even so … what a celebration they must have had!

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Copyright © 2026 Roy Goble, All rights reserved.

02/09/2026

When Jesus was born, the border between Egypt and Judea was fluid, so it’s not possible to say exactly when Joseph, Mary, Jesus, and Sully took the final step to put them out of Herod’s reach.

For a couple with a baby walking alongside a donkey, it was a grueling trek through the dusty frontier before continuing along the sea to Pelusium, the nearest Egyptian city. It’s unlikely there was anything official to note their arrival in a foreign land, but I like to imagine Jesus getting his first passport stamp.

They had made it. They were happy, or at least safe for the time being.

Well, mostly. We can’t forget that they were still refugees. They were strangers living in a strange land. Egypt had a reputation for welcoming people from around the world, but Mary and Joseph must have been well aware of the history of the Jewish people in Egypt.

So as they settled in Pelusium for a few days to rest, acclimate, and get their Egyptian driver’s licenses (Sully was happy to take a break), they probably felt a note of caution. They were glad they had arrived, but not sure what might come next.

In a way, this reminds me of our spiritual journey. When we begin to follow Jesus, we’ve already arrived somewhere: we are redeemed, we know God, we are filled with the Holy Spirit, and we feel deep gratitude. That’s quite an arrival! At the same time, we can never know what will happen next. We may continue to feel hunted, or haunted by our past. Fear and anxiety may continue to dog us.

This tension is uncomfortable. We feel guilty about feeling good. We feel guilty about feeling guilty. In our most twisted moments, we even feel good about feeling guilty.

So maybe it helps to know that Mary and Joseph could relate to that tension. Oddly, the tension is partly what keeps us learning, trusting, growing, and loving God. Also, like Mary and Joseph, we have Jesus with us. He must’ve provided them with a sense of hope and joy, just as he does for us today.

I know I’ll always picture the Flight to Egypt as a dim reflection of my own spiritual journey. Living for Jesus—and all the hope and responsibility that required—changed Mary and Joseph forever.

The same is true for us.

JUNKYARDWISDOM.COM
Copyright © 2026 Roy Goble, All rights reserved.

02/07/2026

The Way of the Sea passed through the city of Gaza, a town on the Mediterranean at the southern end of Judea. It was a region under Herod’s control—as well as under Rome’s thumb—so it was certainly dangerous for Mary, Joseph, and their baby.

The parallels with more recent history are eerie. Distinct cultures, economies, and histories overlapping and clashing, existing in a tension that feels like it could explode.

Our young refugee family walked into this region, fleeing persecution behind them and fearing capture ahead on their journey. Dangerous, but what choice did they have? Their imperative was to leave. Now.

Like most refugees, they didn’t want to draw attention to themselves. They remained on side roads to avoid authorities. They kept mostly to themselves. Maybe they changed some of their wardrobe to blend in with the locals, or learned a few local phrases. They had to be creative if they wanted to stay safe.

Gaza was a good place to blend in. It was a multi-cultural city, and over the centuries it had been ruled by Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and now Rome. Each dynasty left a layer of cultural sediment that shaped the city, and the sediment continued to accumulate as caravans arrived from as far away as Yemen and Ethiopia.

Mary and Joseph had never experienced anything like this back home. It was a far cry from their simple life in Nazareth. We can imagine Mary staring in awe at Nabataean traders from Petra, or Joseph gawking at woodworking techniques he’d never heard about. I’m sure having an adorable baby helped them overcome many cultural barriers.

Mary and Joseph weren’t unique. Travel changes all of us. St. Augustine writes, “The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.”

Imagine how these travels shaped Jesus. Think of all the memories his parents acquired. Of all the stories they told him. The stories we hear from our elders—all of our elders, whether blood relations or not—mark us for life. Because his parents were refugees before they returned to Nazareth, Jesus must have grown up hearing stories of bustling ports, Greek temples, the odd cadence of Nubian dialects, and the sweet taste of watermelons.

During a time of war and refugees, T. S. Eliot wrote in The Four Quartets, “We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.”

Take a moment and read that again. Our exploration—both our literal travels and our spiritual journeys—means we return home as changed people. It’s the same home, but we see it in a new way. Familiar things become strange, and strange things become familiar.

The flight to Egypt was more than a mere journey for Mary and Joseph. It was a life-changing experience that opened their hearts, minds, and souls to the world. And when they eventually returned home to Nazareth, they would have seen their home in entirely new ways. They were changed spiritually.

And it prepared them to raise a child who would change the world.

JUNKYARDWISDOM.COM
Copyright © 2026 Roy Goble, All rights reserved.

Lead, follow, or go your own way

02/06/2026

The first few days of Mary and Joseph’s journey must have been nerve-racking. They had no idea what Herod’s timeline of terror would be. Were they already being pursued? Was there an all-points bulletin out for them? Was that friendly pomegranate salesman by the side of the road actually one of the king’s spies?

Assuming that they took the Way of the Sea to Egypt, this passage from Isaiah 9 takes on particular meaning. It’s a prophecy about the coming Messiah, and I’m going to quote it at length. I hope you read it with fresh eyes in light of Mary and Joseph’s journey—and note what I’ve underlined in the first verse.

Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in
distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land
of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by
the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—
The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
a light has dawned.

You have enlarged the nation
and increased their joy;
they rejoice before you
as people rejoice at the harvest,
as warriors rejoice
when dividing the plunder.

For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,
you have shattered
the yoke that burdens them,
the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor.

Every warrior’s boot used in battle
and every garment rolled in blood
will be destined for burning,
will be fuel for the fire.

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
will accomplish this. (vv 1-9)

As they fled, Joseph and Mary were moving from darkness to light. As residents of Galilee, this passage must have been especially important to them. Their future, the region's future, and the future of the entire world were somehow contained in their child. His birth was a promise of restoration.

And yet they were fleeing for their lives. How could this be? They were still baffled by it all. Mary and Joseph were good people who possessed great wisdom and love. But neither of them expected this. It wasn’t like Mary journaled about one day becoming a virgin mother, or like Joe was in his men's group and in a vulnerable moment said, “You know, guys, I really think my future is in raising the Son of God.”

Even still, that’s where they were. The awkward pregnancy. The journey to Bethlehem. The miraculous birth. The visits from both the esteemed wise men from the East and the stinky shepherds from the fields. And now a harrowing journey forced by a jealous king with absolutely evil intentions.

Mary and Joseph had to keep a low profile. Since their accent would announce they were from Galilee, perhaps they didn’t say much during the first stage of this journey. They might have had time to think and reflect. After the miraculous events of that first Christmas, the young couple sensed they were fulfilling prophecies, but walking in darkness while carrying a great light is never easy.

I wonder if, as they progressed toward Egypt, it was Isaiah’s words of hope that they clung to.

The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

JUNKYARDWISDOM.COM
Copyright © 2026 Roy Goble, All rights reserved.

Lead, follow, or go your own way