Friend of Angels

About the Book

With the visit of an angel, Mary accepted the difficult honor of becoming the mother of the Son of God. With the guidance of several angelic visits, Joseph took on his unusual, taxing, and even dangerous assignment— to protect and provide for them both. Some of the ingredients of Joseph’s story are mentioned in brief gospel narratives of Jesus’ infancy and childhood. Then the record of Joseph goes silent.

After careful research, the author has fleshed out Joseph’s story. Come with him as he takes you under the shadow of Masada, through treacherous mountain terrain, and along bandit-infested trade routes on the flight to Egypt. Follow them home to Nazareth, where Jesus’ peaceful days of growing up alongside his carpenter father were interrupted by Joseph’s untimely—and possibly traumatic— death. Be inspired and awed by this earthly father of Jesus who laid down his life to preserve for us a Savior.

About the Author

F. Burleigh Willard, retired Free Methodist missionary, spent his entire ministry among Latin Americans. He was director and teacher in Bible Schools in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and in Latin districts in the United States, and has also written several text books in Spanish for these Bible Schools. Burleigh has four children. After a 60-year absence, Burleigh, now widowed for the second time, has returned to the Midwest to live with his daughter, Celia, in Illinois.