Put the Kettle On

Put the Kettle On

 

But do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and everything that is done on it will be disclosed.

Since all these things are to be dissolved in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in leading lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved, and the elements will melt with fire? But, in accordance with his promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home.

Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish; and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation. 

2 Peter 3:8-15a

 

Advent is a time in which we both anticipate the celebration of the birth of Christ but also acknowledge our longing for his return to bring us home. This poem is a reflection on 2 Peter 3, and attempts to illustrate the wrestle often found in the wait. In doing so, I have entered into conversation both with Peter and Jesus, from within my own particularities and context. I have also tried to capture the ambivalence of the concept of home within this “meanwhile” of waiting. There are allusions throughout to the difficulties of home, whether colonisation, war, domestic violence, or the second shift of patriarchy. It ends with a homely picture of the age to come. Also, I like tea.

________

Put the Kettle On

Hey Peter. Rocko.

Servant and apostle

Of the Lord Jesus Christ

“Thief in the night”, I get it.

All I needed though was

“Unexpected guest Friday night”

Spotless? I would spritz the devil

Out of my place, or at least

Kick him under the sofa

I’m a woman you see

With a home and a heavy load

I would fear that judgement

I guess Jesus ain't coming back

To tsk at my limply oozing lettuce

(Don’t look in the fridge Lord)

And come to think of it

Jesus has been to my place

Quite a bit before I suppose

As a late night weeping friend

An extra at Christmas lunch

Or seeking refuge from horror

It does feel slow, then, Peter

When women are harrowed at home

Or work or, well, everywhere

Jesus, maybe now? I say,

in lands of dispossession

Hearing news of homes bombed

But then, oh the patience, I get it

Sometimes loved like that too

Fiercely, persistently, poured out

So put the kettle on for me,

Lord, Earl Grey for the Day

I’ll keep pouring love meanwhile

Rev Dr Megan Powell du Toit is Senior Pastor of Rouse Hill Baptist Church in Sydney. She is also an academic, editor, preacher, writer, and poet. She is co-host of the With All Due Respect podcast with Rev Dr Michael Jensen, which is produced by their joint project, The WADR Project, and is part of the Undeceptions Network.

This devotional is the eighth in a series of daily email devotionals for Advent 2023. This year's series reflects on the longing, hope, and beauty of God’s ‘Common Home’ being realised, revealed, and renewed through the birth of Jesus.

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