A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins. The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den. They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. Isaiah 11:1-9
Dear Mama,
we had some delays at first, but our trip is going very well, albeit slowly. We are trying to avoid the busiest routes and follow the map that Papa and Joseph worked out before we left. This route is fairly hilly, and I am so big, my progress is slower than I want. I usually walk alongside the donkey or follow in his footsteps if the paths are very narrow. I had a spill the other day and am still a bit reluctant to ride. It wasn't the animal's fault.
A lovely encounter happened last night. Less than an hour after we set out, we came across some young shepherds caring for their family's sheep. They were sitting by a fire, having their supper when we came by. They got up and came to us with smiles on their faces. They invited us to sit by the fire and visit with them. We couldn't resist their welcome. They gave us each a mug of hot sweet tea and were so curious about us. The youngest sat by me and leaned close. He couldn't have been more than seven or eight. He smiled at me and told me the child I was carrying was very important, very special. They told us about their lives, their families and sang some songs for us. We were careful not to tell them too much about ourselves. We do have to be very careful. It was a moment of grace and peace in the midst of hard scrabble travel.
It won't be long now before we get to Bethlehem. Once Joseph gets his paperwork filed, we can hurry home to you both. The dried fruit and meats you sent with us have really sustained us along our journey. We have been blessed with mostly quiet at night as we travel and family that welcomes us. We will travel home by daylight and main roads, at least for the first day of the journey. That will make our return much faster than our going.
Mama, Joseph has been so kind and gentle throughout this trip. I am so blessed to have him as my husband. He doesn't get angry with me for being so slow, and insists we stop regularly for a few minutes rest. When I can't sleep at night he recites from the psalms, and they calm my heart. I think you and Papa must understand this kind of love.
Love,
Mary
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