A Letter to Miriam

"I brought you up out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. I sent Moses to lead you, also Aaron and Miriam." Micah 6:4 (NIV)

Dear Miriam,

Oh, Miriam, what were your thoughts as you walked alongside Moses and Aaron, yet so often they received the recognition?

It was you who stood watch over your baby brother when his tiny basket floated upon the Nile, making sure he landed safely in the arms of Pharaoh's daughter. It was you who courageously stepped forward and asked if she would like a Hebrew woman to nurse him, bringing Moses back into the loving arms of his own mother. It was you, sister.

I wonder if you knew then what God was doing.

Today I read of you as a prophet. What an extraordinary honor. In a world where women were so rarely recognized, God called you by that title. You were not simply Moses' sister. You were a leader, chosen by God, walking beside Moses and Aaron in His work.

Then I read Micah's words, and they stopped me.

"I sent Moses to lead you, also Aaron and Miriam."

God didn't forget your name. He didn't simply remember you as someone's sister. He remembered you as one He had sent.

And yet, so few know your story.

Your life was not polished into perfection. Scripture tells us of your faithfulness, but it also tells us of your failure. You spoke against your brother, and the Lord disciplined you with leprosy. Yet even in your discipline, I see something beautiful. Seven days later you were restored, and all of Israel waited before continuing their journey.

They did not leave you behind. What grace that must have been.

I think sometimes we believe our failures disqualify us. Your story reminds me that God's discipline is not His rejection. Restoration has always been part of His heart.

Then there is the song.

"Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron's sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing. Miriam sang to them: 'Sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted. Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.'" Exodus 15:20–21 (NIV)

I can almost hear the tambourines. I can picture the dancing. I can imagine your face as you celebrated the God who had made a way where there had been no way.

You knew what it was to witness miracles. And yet...

You never entered the Promised Land.

There is something about that which settles deeply in my heart.

We often measure faithfulness by the finish line. God seems to measure it differently.

Faithfulness is not always arriving at the destination we imagined.

Sometimes it is preparing the way for someone else.

Sometimes it looks like protecting a brother.

Sometimes it looks like leading quietly.

Sometimes it looks like worshiping after the sea has parted.

Sometimes it looks like receiving correction, accepting grace, and continuing to walk.

Your story reminds me that obedience is never wasted, even when the outcome isn't what we expected.

Your life mattered.

Your courage mattered.

Your leadership mattered.

Your obedience mattered.

And your failures did not erase your calling

.

As I walk through my own struggles, I carry your story with me. You remind me that God sees the quiet faithfulness others overlook. He sees the women who stand watch while others receive the credit. He sees those who protect, who lead, who worship, who stumble, who are restored, and who simply keep walking.

History may remember only a few names, but heaven remembers every act of faithfulness.

"God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him..." Hebrews 6:10 (NIV)

Perhaps that is why your story continues to move me.

Not because you were perfect.

Not because you stood in the spotlight.

But because you were faithful to the God who saw you.

Thank you, Miriam, for showing me that a life surrendered to the Lord leaves an eternal imprint, even if history remembers only part of the story.

I look forward to meeting you one day.

Until then, your story continues to strengthen mine.

With gratitude,

A sister still learning to trust the Lord.