in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin
engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.’ But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ The angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.’ Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her. Luke 1:26-38
Dear Mama,
We took our time descending the hills as I am very unstable these days and Joseph was afraid of me falling down. He mad me walk behind him with my hand on his shoulder, since I would have surely fallen riding the burro. He is very surefooted but likes to rock back and forth and is prone to toss something (or me) off, if he's feeling uncomfortable and ornery. It took a long time and we were very weary. We are now on the outskirts of town with just few miles to go. We are staying with your sister Ruth, who has been very kind. The house is overrun with people, Mama, all trying to get to be registered. It's an overcrowded barn here! And so noisy!
Ruth wanted to know all about me and Joseph. I tried to hedge around the story of the angel visitation, but she insisted. I guess you had confided in her before you sent us here. She wanted both our stories told with all the details! Your sister is quite a character! I remember her when I was little but now, I can see her as an adult. She talks a mile a minute, cooks and cleans constantly and never seems to tire. She sure wanted to sit a listen to us for a while though. She made everyone go outside and so chores so she could hear us completely and thoroughly.
I told her the story of the angel's visit and how terrified I have been. She teared up at one point and took my hands. She told me she believed me because she too had a dream. It was vague but she saw the world was changing for good and that a young woman would birth this change. She looked in my eyes and said, "that's you, Mary, that's you!' I got goosebumps, Mama. I needed this confirmation today, as my faith has been lagging. I'm so tired and can't wait to be back home.
Please pray for us and send Papa my love,
love always,
Mary
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