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Matthew 1:19-20 “Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do 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 as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit’.”

Mary didn’t know what to do. How would she break the news to Joe? They had only been dating for six weeks, but she knew that he loved her. She could see it in his eyes. And she knew that she loved him. He was so gentle and understanding. There weren’t many men in the world like Joe.

Mary had met Joe in the emergency room on the very night of the assault, and they had been together every day since, as if it was meant to be. Joe was there waiting for a friend who had twisted an ankle in a softball game. She sat next to him in the waiting room before they took her in to be examined.

Mary had been too upset to talk, and Joe hadn’t tried to make conversation. He didn’t even ask what had happened. He simply looked at her with tenderness and said, “It will be okay. They will take care of you.” Even those few words had been enough to create a bond between them. And Joe had come back later, after he took his friend home, to see if she was all right. By then Mary was able to talk a little bit about the rape: the horror she had felt during the attack and the humiliation and anger that were still growing within her. She was grateful for his presence. Somehow it was easier to talk about it with him than with the counselor who had been assigned to her case. Joe had listened quietly for several hours that night, and had called or come to keep her company every night since, gradually coaxing her out of her small apartment into the world again.

Joe had never once tried to touch her, and Mary loved him for that. He seemed to know without her saying it that she couldn’t stand to be touched - not yet. Soon, maybe. She had found herself longing for that moment and wondering what it would be like during the past couple of weeks. Mary knew that Joe would wait until she gave him a sign, and she had thought that it might be tonight.

But, when she let him know what the doctor had told her today, would Joe want to touch her? Was this the end of her hope that their love would lead to marriage and a family? What would Joe do when she told him about the baby?