Third Week of Advent
December 16th, 2020
Arts and Faith:
We can experience God in a number of different ways. God is always with us, and with each new experience, something more of God is revealed. Poetry is one art form that can deepen our experience. Read the poem below by Mary Oliver: Making the House Ready for the Lord. What are ways that you make your house ready for the Lord? Will you be ready for when he comes?
Making the House Ready for the Lord
Dear Lord, I have swept and I have washed but
still nothing is as shining as it should be
for you. Under the sink, for example, is an
uproar of mice - it is the season of their
many children. What shall I do? And under the eaves
and through the walls the squirrels
have gnawed their ragged entrances - but it is the season
when they need shelter, so what shall I do? And
the raccoon limps into the kitchen and opens the cupboard
while the dog snores, the cat hugs the pillow;
what shall I do? Beautiful is the new snow falling
in the yard and the fox who is staring boldly
up the path, to the door. And still I believe you will
come, Lord; you will, when I speak to the fox,
the sparrow, the lost dog, the shivering sea-goose,
know that really I am speaking to you whenever I say
as I do all morning and afternoon: Come in, Come in.