poor

 the rich are ‘struggling’

so that they need some more breaks,

but when those in need

seek help with food, hope, or life,

it’s ‘you broke it, you fix it.’

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

monday

two bathrooms to clean,

a week-load of used towels,

vacuum half the rooms –

can you explain once again

why you didn’t rest on Monday?

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

predestination

before time ticktocked,

before the dust had settled

so you could shape us,

you decided we were yours

and have never changed your mind.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

shopping

the grocery list
could be filled with canned goods,
fresh veggies, needed supplies
for the food pantry, with one
thing for me, not vice versa.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

murmur

brushing the cat,

walking a dog in the snow,

watching dusk’s rainfall,

and yet, we grumble about

these things that should bring us joy.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

yesterday

yesterday, you were

the fellow dashing into traffic

to help push a stalled car, and

the lady who bought all

the books, pencils, crayons,

paper, and backpacks in the store,

and were taking them to donate

to the local schools, until

your car stopped running.

where will I see you today?

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

creation

help us remember

that water, air, all creatures

existed with you

before they did with us, so

we should show them more respect.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

bugged

does it bug you, God,

that folks expect you to help

find them parking spots,

but believe you should not do

anything for the hungry?

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

praying?

praying, we flit from

memories to song fragments,

this complaint to that,

then maintain that you were not

paying any attention.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

when

when we are empty,

fill us with your grace and hope;

when we are lonely,

surround us with those who care

for others just as you do.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

kingdom, come

early each morning,

your kingdom arrives en masse –

ducklings and squirrels,

tiny birds twirling in the air,

and Gibbs trembles in delight!

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

IF, TG?

some face another

Monday, where pain always lives,

or Wednesdays almost

impossible to get past,

or that Every Day pain,

grief, poverty, rejection

no one else cares about;

if it were only a Friday

everyone could give thanks for

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

others

the lost and the addicted,

the broken and the stranger,

the despised and the fearful,

the immigrant and the child,

all the Others are really us.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

steps

while we are deciding

to turn in your direction,

you have already

come further than we ever

could imagine, to find us.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

hungry

we gorge on anger,

feed at the bitter buffet,

chug bottles of bile,

never realizing that

we are starving for mercy.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

in

in cold, scary caves,
in open-hearted neighbors,
in relieving pain,
in free school supplies for kids,
we serve by your side, O God.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

the radar shows

with the same forecast
for angry and bitter words
in the coming days,
we could use a few pop-up
showers of hope, peace, and grace.

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

camper

you strike the Spirit
against our hard-as-flint hearts,
in hopes that a spark
will ignite our dried-up grace
into compassion for all.
 
© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

no lines

meanwhile, you wait for

someone to show up for your

Let’s-Build-Some-Hope sale.

 

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

summer walk

we take a daily stroll
through the flowing fields of fear
and hire landscapers
to tend our gardens of doubt,
ignoring creation’s gifts.
 
© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

what the world needs now

it is so easy

to hate evil in our world,

yet seems difficult

to love good so deeply we

can’t help but give it away.

 

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

 

 

finger play

we are so busy
jabbing fingers at others
when we could be
pointing to the One who longs
to reconcile the broken.
 
© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

balloon man

Jesus walks the streets
of the kingdom, bouquets of
Spirit-filled balloons
in his hands, ready to give
one to each person he meets.
 
© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

teller

at the scheduled time,
with our shopping list in heart,
we crank out prayers,
when all we want is God to
tell us who we really are
 
© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

when

God’s grace flows freely,
hope walks through fear-littered streets,
peace bridges divides,
twisted justice is straightened,
when we love, when we love, when . . .
 
© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

slated

the world has scribbled
our lives with fear and anger,
but you cleanse our souls,
so that, tabula rasaed,
you may write grace in large print.
 
© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

 

abyss

from the back of life,

you continue to push us

closer to the edge

we dread, till we have no choice

but to step into wonder.

 

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

hesed

when friends drift away,

when family loses us,

when angry bombast

sticks a foot out to trip us,

caritas non deficit*

 

© 2018 Thom M. Shuman

*love never falls away

hemmed in

when we place our faith
in all our fears and worries,
we become too scared
to reach out and touch the hem
of your embracing goodness.
 
© 2018 Thom M. Shuman