Jesus said, “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:31-46
Dear Aunt Elizabeth,
I write to you from Bethlehem, this holy city which has been turned into a market and freak show because of this silly census. We have knocked on the door of small and large inns and no one has room for us. We saved up our money to be here and to stay in a safe place, but no one will have us. I am so tired and brokenhearted with humanity. Everyone seems out for the money. When people see how pregnant I am they turn their backs, not wanted the mess. Can you believe the selfishness and the cruelty?
Auntie, I also don't know what to do. I started cramping a little bit this morning and then it stopped but it feels like the baby is coming any moment. I don't want to scare Joseph but the truth is, we need a safe place for the birth to happen here. It is very evident that I am not going to make it home which makes me very sad. I told Joseph we really, really need to find a place. He doesn't feel the urgency that I do. I feel like my whole being is about to explode! Oh, how I wish you were here with me!
After this rest we will continue to search for a place to lodge. Joseph has gone off to find some distant cousins that may have an idea where we could stay. I keep fall asleep under this tree where I am sitting. Some cruel person said I was not allowed to camp here and tried to shoo me away. I told him I was waiting for my husband. When he saw my swollen belly he got very quiet and then left me alone. I do hope Joseph returns soon, I don't think I could take another encounter like that!
please pray for us, we need it so!
love,
Mary
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