Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter Jerusalem!
The LORD has taken away the judgments against you, he has turned away your enemies.
The king of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst;
you shall fear disaster no more.
On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
Do not fear, O Zion;
do not let your hands grow weak.
The LORD, your God, is in your midst,
a warrior who gives victory;
he will rejoice over you with gladness,
he will renew you in his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing
as on a day of festival.
I will remove disaster from you,
so that you will not bear reproach for it.
I will deal with all your oppressors
at that time.
And I will save the lame
and gather the outcast,
and I will change their shame into praise
and renown in all the earth.
At that time I will bring you home,
at the time when I gather you;
for I will make you renowned and praised
among all the peoples of the earth,
when I restore your fortunes
before your eyes, says the LORD. Zephaniah 3:14-20
Dear Mama,
We are edging ever closer to Bethlehem and are staying in the hills well outside the city today. This area is dotted with sheep and their are may sheep camps and shepherds around us. As we were walking in the cool of the evening, we heard a small voice singing with great gusto and clarity. The words she sang were prophet's words. Joseph believes they are Zephaniah's words. "Sing aloud O daughter of Zion". The chorus repeated over and over, so we followed the music and finally found a little girl singing to a tiny lamb. She stopped singing and smiled at us. Her father came over and introduced himself and invited us to warm ourselves by the fire. What a gift true hospitality is, and how lovely it was to rest a while there. They told us the stories of these hills and their people. The moon shone brightly above us and we felt safe and warm. We fell asleep as the sun was rising and woke again later to the little girl singing. They insisted we share their breakfast which was hearty and filling and we started on our way again.
Mama, I am moving quite slowly these past few days. The baby has quieted down for the most part, although I can feel the movement and hiccupping still. I feel like I have to waddle to walk. The wise woman told me that these would be signs of the child being ready to appear. I hope it isn't too soon and we can make it home again before my delivery time. Joseph has me ride on the burro as much as possible. We make better time when I ride but Joseph isn't critical of my slow pace. He has been so kind and supportive. He had the little girl teach us her song, and now he sings it to me as we travel on.
Much love,
Mary
No comments:
Post a Comment