Advent 2 - Mary Letter Day 8

For Sunday, December 9th, 2018  Advent Two

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius

 Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and 

his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea  and Trachonitis,

 and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas 

and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the 

wilderness. He went into  all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming

 a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness  of sins, as it is written in the

 book of the words of the prophet Isaiah,

"The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:

'Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.

Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low,

and the crooked shall be made straight,
and the rough ways made smooth;

and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'" Luke 3:1-6

Dear Aunt Elizabeth,

I find myself in a wilderness, a forest thick with no way forward. Everyone is telling
me what is best for me, and yet, I don't know what is truly best for me. I have been
praying night and day. I wait on some sign or visitation but none comes to me. I can
hear my Poppa and Joseph making plans, but are they the right plans. Truly, it will
not matter because they will decide everything for me.  One day I was a girl walking
freely and now I am a danger to the community and a prisoner in my home. I don't
mean to sound pitiful, but I am at the end of my rope. I feel like crying and I often
can't hold back the tears.

Momma has been very gentle these last days. I think she is scared for me, for all of
us, as well. She has some friends of mine stop by the other day, some of whom are
already mothers. She did it very quietly and it was a nice surprise for me. They all
brought me things for the baby. Some of the things were clothing that their babes
had already outgrown They laughed when I told them about the visit of the wise
 women and how embarrassed I was. They assured me that they had been
shocked and horrified as well when they were examined. It felt wonderful to be
with girls my age, even though it was a short visit. It did give me hope that one day
things might just return to normal.

Auntie, I need your prayers, now more than ever! Sometimes I wonder if God will
forgive me for being so afraid and running over with tears. Please keep me close to
your heart as your prepare for the birth of your little one. Both of us have great
challenges ahead of us, I know. Neither of us is living the life we expected.

I hear them calling me for supper. I best not hold up the meal, as Poppa and Joseph
get really cranky if they have to wait.



Much love,


Mary