“This 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. 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. 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.” Matthew 1:18-20 NIV.

God stands by what he initiates. He defends it, even if it seems wrong or dangerous. However, the hope that “does not disappoint” (Romans 5:5) rests on the certainty that God authored a project or unequivocally said he would back it up, if the initiative came from us. For example, the idea to build a temple for God was David's, but it was blessed by God and clear directions were given to him on how to proceed. (Samuel 7:1-17).

A saying goes, "When in doubt, don't." How many regrets and desperate attempts to recast failures as successes after projects initially portrayed as coming from God failed miserably or were only partially successful! Worse yet, such situations aren't always followed by taking responsibility for our errors and sincerely seeking God with humility to understand why things didn't turn out as expected, as Joshua did after the debacle at Ai (Joshua 7:6–12). Instead, all sorts of psychological manipulation tricks are sometimes used to prevent witnesses from thinking critically. Sadly, many have lost their faith in God after seeing or taking so-called " steps " or " leaps of faith " that backfired.

On the other hand, we must remember the biblical truth that accurately acting on God's inspiration doesn't always end in a positive note from a human perspective. Some people who obeyed God in faith, like Joseph in today’s verse, were proven right during their lifetime. Others who did the same, like the prophet Jeremiah, endured various pains and misunderstandings until death. (Jeremiah 43:4–7). In any case, whatever our personal experiences, in this life or in eternity, God never fails to vindicate His faithful servants, as Hebrews 11 shows us.

May we hear our Lord Jesus Christ tell us in the end: "Well done, good and faithful servant; enter into the joy of your master" (Matthew 25:23).