Mary Letter - Day 25

1 Give the king your justice, O God, * 

and your righteousness to the king’s son; 

2 That he may rule your people righteously *

 and the poor with justice; 

3 That the mountains may bring prosperity to the people, *

 and the little hills bring righteousness. 

4 He shall defend the needy among the people, *

 and shall rescue the poor and crush the oppressor. 

5 He shall live as long as the sun and moon endure, * 

from one generation to another. 

6 He shall come down like rain upon the mown field, * 

like showers that water the earth. 

7 In his time shall the righteous flourish; * 

there shall be abundance of peace 

till the moon shall be no more. 

8 He shall rule from sea to sea, * 

and from the River to the ends of the earth. 

9 His foes shall bow down before him, * 

and his enemies lick the dust. Psalm 72:1-9

Dear Elizabeth,

We have arrived in Bethlehem, and it was not as I expected. The city is extremely crowded and noisy especially during day. When we got here Joseph immediately took us to his relative's home. We had to make our way through a big market place. People were pushing and shoving and calling out in many langauages. Joseph held on tight to me and the animal. When we got to the family's house, they told us they were filled up with other family members who had come unannounced for the registration. They fed us and sent us on our way. I was shocked! But Joseph reminded me that we were journeying here with God's guidance. It sure didn't feel like it at that moment. We knocked on many doors and were turned away over and over again. We spent the evening, huddled by a fire on the edge of the city with some shepherds who kindly shared their fire with us. I was so cold and tired.

After midnight, a inn keeper, who we had seen earlier, came to collect us. He offered us his stable, a cave really. But it is clean and they brought blankets and clean straw for us to sleep on. It was a miracle really in this city which seems to care about commerce and money. He was so kind and wouldn't take our money. His wife came this morning, and seeing my condition, brought us food and water to wash with. 

Joseph is off now trying to make arrangements to register. There are lines everywhere. Rachel, out hostess, who has been so kind, came and sat with me a while after Joseph left. She is very concerned that I am close to my time. She has sent for the wise women to come and examine me. I am huge and not feeling so great but I am hoping that it is just the journey and the weather. I am not a great fan of this city with it's noise, it's smells and the terrible crowding. We are carrying God's child, and I pray God will see us through all of this mess. Right now, it feels awfully messy.

Much love,

Mary