Be About Our Father’s Business
Can you imagine losing the Messiah? God had placed a child of great importance into Mary’s lap, and she lost him. I can’t imagine how she felt as she and Joseph searched through the crowded city. Yet, Jesus was not lost. He was right where he needed to be: in his Father’s house. It was not time for Jesus to begin his ministry, yet he could not resist talking with the spiritual leaders of his day. Do you know that feeling? Talking about God, scriptures, and faith fills my heart with excitement and joy.
There is more significance to the words of Jesus in verse 49 (“How is it that you sought me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”). If you read the King James version, the ending of this verse may be worded a bit differently. If you read in another version, it most likely reads the way I wrote it but there is an addition of a note of some kind. Both the King James version and the notations in other versions end Jesus’ statement not with “in my Father’s house” but “at my Father’s business.” There is a significance to this statement said at this time. In ancient Hebrew culture, a boy entered into the family business at the age of 12. This is when he would begin his apprenticeship at the job of his father. Jesus would enter into the family business of becoming a carpenter like Joseph, but he knew his true Father and the business he had been born to fulfill.
What were you created to do? That is the question many of us struggle with. It is not an easy answer, and I am not going to pretend to be able to answer it for you. Some of us will be teachers, others will be musicians, while others will find their calling as construction workers, accountants, shop clerks… the list is endless. Whatever path you take in your life, what truly matters is a question only you can answer. Are you about your Heavenly Father’s business? It doesn’t matter if you sit behind a desk or steering wheel. What matters is how you handle the relationships God places in your life. Do you talk about your Savior and God? Are people affected by the life you live?
We sit at the beginning of new year full of possibilities. The year will come with struggles and successes. It will have highs and lows. It will hold opportunities only God already knows. We can resolve to exercise more, read more, complain less. We can face this new year with trepidation or with delight. That is all part of our story, but it isn’t the sum of who we are. We are the children of God, and He wants us to be about His business. He wants us to live in His ways, talk with His words, love with His love. No matter where 2024 takes you, let it find you about your Father’s business.
(Written by Keegan Harkins.)
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