Max Lucado describes the choice Joseph made to be obedient by comparing it to going out on a limb for God. He claims,
Quote from Max Lucado (TAKEN OFF A SERMON TAPE):
Joseph was perched firmly on his branch in the tree. It was thick, reliable and perfect for sitting. It was so strong that he didn’t tremble when the storms came nor did he shake when the winds blew. No, this branch was predictable and solid. And Joseph had no intention of ever leaving it…that is until he was told to go out on a limb. As he sat securely on his branch he looked up at the limb that God wanted him to climb. He’d never seen one so thin. “That’s no place for a man to go, that’s no place to sit. There’s no protection from the wind, there’s no protection from the weather and how could you sleep dangling from a quivering twig?” He inched back a bit, leaned against the trunk and pondered the situation. Common sense told him not to go out on a limb. Self-defense told him not to do it. Convenience told him not to do it. Pride told him not to do it. But God had told him to do it. And that made it the only option. So resolute, he grasped the smaller limb. With tight lips and a determined glint in his eye he placed one hand in front of the other until he dangled in the air with only his faith in God as a safety net. At times that limb must have bounced furiously in the wind. But Joseph just shut his eyes and held on. But you could be sure of one thing, he never regretted it. Sweet was the reward for his courage. One look in the face of that heavenly toddler and he knew that he would do it again in a heartbeat….
Lucado closes with this thought: Have you been called to go out on a limb for God? You can bet it won’t be easy. Limb climbing never has been easy. Just ask Joseph or better yet ask Jesus…He knows better than anyone the cost of hanging on a tree.