Matthew 1:20

"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..."

"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....."

"Joseph, chagrined but noble, determined to take care of things quietly so Mary would not be disgraced [when she became pregnant]. While he was trying to figure...."

"As [Joseph considered breaking his engagement to Mary], an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. "Joseph, son of David," the angel said, "do....."

Inspirational illustration of Matthew 1:20-21 -- 21 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. She will give b

Would people really want to take Christ our the nativity? A preacher gets in trouble talking about Christmas on Sunday, but warns that the world will take Christ out of Christmas.

I've bet you have had a bunch of these moments at Christmas! Phil Ware writes about Christmas, Joseph and Mary, and the "You've got to be kidding me!" moments in the life of Jesus.

What do you do with your shattered dreams? Phil Ware talks about the recurring phrase in Matthew 1 and 2, in a dream, and how God fills the empty spaces left behind by our broken dreams.

What in the world are you talking about wiggling and squirming? Russ finds out about a grandbaby because of a sonogram and the baby is wiggling around all over the place and reminds us that life begins in the mind of God.

Does God really have a bigger dream for you than He gave Joseph and Mary? Rick Brown shares an insight from the Westjet Santa Claus video and says we need to ask God for more and greater vision.

Our prayer is that the Lord Jesus and his abiding presence can be real to you during this special season of grace and joy. Phil Ware shares a Merry Christmas greeting from all of the Heartlight.org and VerseoftheDay.com family.

Mary's simple life was about to come to a dramatic end! Phil Ware finishes the year 2012 with two powerful posts or articles about Jesus' birth and the people gathered around him, and emphasizes that God's greatest beginnings are found in hard endings.

Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This is the Biblical account of Jesus' birth from Matthew 1 and Luke 2 from the NIV 11 version of the Holy Scriptures.

"Dear Friend of God, Today, I AM asking you to do something important. I know you are busy with all your Christmas plans, but there is one important....."

"Dear Disciple, I know most of you hate tests! Some of those tests are medical tests which can be terrifying. Some tests are necessary to get you into..."

Like Mary, we don't know fully what we are committing to do, but we know that our ultimate destination is Jesus. Phil Ware reminds us of the gritty reality of Jesus' birth and Mary choosing to accept the challenge of being Jesus' mother and reminds us of our need to commit to have Jesus born in our lives.

The cycle of violence is heartbreaking — will it ever end? Phil Ware reminds us of the simple, yet powerful words found in the hard story of Jesus' birth and Herod's attempt to murder him at Bethlehem -- But Herod came to an end.

Are you walking down the hard road alone? Phil Ware continues to share his insights on experiencing Jesus as Immanuel.

"Dear Child of the King, When you open your Bible and you see the appearance of angels, know that the Father is up to something special in your world...."

How can God know experientially how hard life can sometimes be for us? James Nored and Phil Ware remind us to push past the glittering lights and see that God came to be one of us in the birth of Jesus of Nazareth.

What else can you say, but thank you? Phil Ware shares a collection of Scriptures that talk about the significance of Jesus' birth.