Merry ChristMAS! To stay in the spirit of the advent season leading up to Christmas, I’m going to share with you a story I wrote about Mary, the mother of Jesus, for the December issue of VIVA magazine.

For those who don’t know, VIVA is a Dubai-based womens magazine targeting ex-pat British women, hence the celebrity covers and interviews, and focus on fashion. It is much like “Glamour” in the US, and really not something I would buy myself if it wasn’t for the 100+ pages inside the Jordanian version that highlight issues and people pertinent to my world in Amman. Our primary audience in Jordan is different: upper middle class professional Muslim women, and it reaches about 3,000 of them every month.

Someday I’ll get really proficient and be able to upload a photo of the cover, or the scanned in version of the story from the magazine.

A Different Look At Mary

Dear family and friends around the world,

Finally, a blog to post family news and articles I have written for you to taste a slice of our lives and learn about more Jordan and the Middle East.

I will be approving comments before they appear on the screen. I hope there will we people from many nations and faiths commenting, and at times we may disagree, so I ask you follow the teachings of the Apostle Paul “Let your conversations be full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” Colossians 4:9. Yup, the goal is grace-filled, tasty dialogue.

I’m thanking God for each of you as I send the email out. I hope to have the first post up tomorrow!

In His gracious grip,

Wendy