Leave. Now.

We like our Jesus stories tidy. Especially the Christmas stories. You know the routine: angel, stable, manger, wise men, then fade to Silent Night by candlelight.

But after Christmas, the story swerves.

There’s a dream. A warning. A paranoid king. And suddenly, a young family running for their lives.

Toward Egypt.

Matthew gives the journey barely a paragraph, which is odd—because this road trip would have wrecked them. New parents. A newborn. No plan beyond leave now. And a destination that meant a foreign language, foreign customs, and zero guarantees.

Which means—however uncomfortable it makes us—Jesus spent part of his childhood as a refugee.

That detail has been rattling around in my head for years.

So next week I’m launching a new Junkyard Wisdom™ devotion series—ten devotions following Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, and Sully the donkey on the road from Bethlehem to Egypt. It’s a continuation of the Advent journey, sorta. But this leg is quieter, riskier, and far less suitable for Christmas cards.

Scripture doesn’t give us many details. Church tradition offers some ideas, but nothing solid. All of which is fine by me. It leaves room to imagine what might have happened—which is exactly the creative space where I love to write.

The limited amount we know raises all kinds of questions. Did they follow Roman roads or avoid them? Did Joseph find work? Did Mary wonder if obedience was supposed to feel this terrifying? Did Sully meet an Egyptian donkey lady friend?

We don’t know.

What we do know, since this is a Junkyard Wisdom™ Road Trip Devotion, is there will be imagination grounded in history. There will be dry humor, because that’s what keeps it human. There will be Sully, because every long journey needs a witness who didn’t sign up for this. And—spoiler alert—there will be a successful flight from Herod.

I wanted you to hear about it first. The new series, that is. Not the escape from Herod. I assume you already heard that part.

Anyway, the emails begin in about a week.

More soon.