Advent - A Time of Waiting

She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn. (Luke 2:7)
No room for you in the city, Jesus
So many doors were tried and closed to you.
So many places did not warm you with welcome.

There is still a coming.

There is still a Bethlehem.
It is the city of my heart
With no room to give you welcome.

It is the manger of my inners self
Where your request is made,
Searching for an entrance
To my poor and empty dwelling.

Advent is a time of waiting.
I will wait faithfully
For slow recognition
Of the closed doors in my Bethlehem.

Advent is a time for yearning.
I will keep on longing for you.
I will try to do so patiently.

Advent is a time of hoping.
I will seek the strong stirring sureness
That it is possible to open doors.

Advent is a time of coming.
I will pray with all the church:
Come. Come. Come, Lord Jesus.
Welcome into my home of love.

And Lord, when it is time to say:
This is the Christmas Day,
I pray that you will warmly be welcome
In the Bethlehem of my heart,
Giving birth in my newly opened places.

From Sister Theresa Sullivan, D.C.