Right now, all over the world, Christ-followers are celebrating the season of Advent—the season that precedes Christmas—a season of anticipation, of hope, of waiting, and of preparation. It’s the season we should be using to prepare our home and our hearts for the annual celebration of the birth of our Savior.
There is an old poem by Eleanor Farjeon called “People, Look East.” Contemplate her words:
People look east, the time is near of the crowning of the year.
Make your house fair as you are able—trim the hearth and set the table.
People look east and sing today: Love, the guest, is on the way!
Farjeon’s poem speaks to us about an important aspect of the season of Advent: we need to prepare for the celebration of our Savior’s birth. I have always felt that there are times when I have to do in the flesh what I need to do in my spirit. Perhaps this is true for you as well.
In this season of Advent—this season of waiting and anticipating—perhaps we should be doing some work of cleaning and straightening and beautifying. If it helps you to clean your home and decorate and put out the best silver to help you prepare your heart for Christ’s arrival, please set yourself to those tasks as you also do that vital spiritual work internally: Make your house fair as you are able—trim the hearth and set the table.
Isaiah foretells about John the Baptizer: “A voice of one calling: ‘In the desert prepare the way for the Lord. . . .’” (Isaiah 40:3) The word “prepare” in Hebrew can mean “to make ready,” or “to turn; to face.” This kind of preparation can include the tearing down of old ways and getting rid of the parts of us we should not have and do not need; a deconstruction of sorts. (Isaiah 40:3-5) This preparation can also involve letting God do something new within you; some reconstruction, perhaps. (Isaiah 40:28-31) Both are hard work, and both fit within this season of waiting and preparing.
This season, I encourage you to use the normal activities of life as exercises that help you do some needed work in your inner self. As you sweep the floor, trim the tree, wrap a package, or make Christmas treats, ask God to show you what needs attention within you and to show you how to do that work. Think of a commonplace activity you can do to help you center your heart and mind on what you need to be doing in your inner being. It could be cleaning the house, raking the leaves, making the beds, rearranging the garage, decorating for Christmas, preparing or serving a meal.
These can all become sacred rituals and traditions of the season. They can bring a little holiness into our everyday lives. These routine activities of cleaning, straightening, fixing up, moving things around, and throwing out the old to make room for the new can help you do the same in your spiritual life
This season, starting today, let’s celebrate his great love for us by preparing room in our hearts for him to make his throne.
- Dr. Martin Johnson, Chief Academic Officer
Eleanor Farjeon, “People, Look East,” in public domain.