Scripture

Isaiah 35: 1-10 (CEB)
“The desert and the dry land will be glad;
    the wilderness will rejoice and blossom like the crocus.
They will burst into bloom,
    and rejoice with joy and singing.
They will receive the glory of Lebanon,
    the splendor of Carmel and Sharon.
They will see the Lord’s glory,
    the splendor of our God.
Strengthen the weak hands,
    and support the unsteady knees.
Say to those who are panicking:
    “Be strong! Don’t fear!
    Here’s your God,
        coming with vengeance;
        with divine retribution
    God will come to save you.”
Then the eyes of [those who cannot see] will be opened,
    and the ears of [those who cannot hear] will be cleared.
Then [those who cannot move] will leap like the deer,
    and the tongue of [those who cannot make a sound] will sing.

Waters will spring up in the desert,
    and streams in the wilderness.
The burning sand will become a pool,
    and the thirsty ground, fountains of water.
The jackals’ habitat, a pasture;
    grass will become reeds and rushes.

Luke 1: 46b-55 (The Message)
“And Mary said,
I’m bursting with God-news;
    I’m dancing the song of my Savior God.
God took one good look at me, and look what happened—
    I’m the most fortunate woman on earth!
What God has done for me will never be forgotten,
    the God whose very name is holy, set apart from all others.
[God’s] mercy flows in wave after wave
    on those who are in awe before him.
[God] bared [an] arm and showed… strength,
    scattered the bluffing braggarts.
[God] knocked tyrants off their high horses,
    pulled victims out of the mud.
The starving poor sat down to a banquet;
    the callous rich were left out in the cold.
[God] embraced the chosen child, Israel;
    [God] remembered and piled on the mercies, piled them high.
It’s exactly what [God] promised,
    beginning with Abraham and right up to now.”