visions

“In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by the river Chebar, the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.”  Ezekiel 1:1

through those years

of loneliness,

those months of

utter fear,

those days of despair

which never seem to end,

help us to see

your joy in the little

child jumping in puddles,

your wonder in stars

shimmering in night skies,

your arms in the hope

which cradles us

for as long as we need

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

Ascension

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them.  Matthew 28:16

we hesitate at

the hospital room door;

we stumble following

the casket to the grave;

we convince ourselves

we cannot challenge injustice,

never realizing that

your are already there,

waiting for us, at all these

Galilees . . .

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

eve of Ascension

“Then Elijah said to him, ‘Stay here; for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.’ But he said, ‘As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.’”  2 Kings 2:6

may they find you at their sides,

as they clean up

the debris from tornadoes,

as they pray the levees

will not crumble,

as they seek to welcome

those who have lost

everything except hope

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

warts

“He said to his disciples, ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear.’”  Luke 12:22

we will spend

more time worrying

about lunch and dinner,

than feeding the hungry;

more time at the fitness center,

than jumping rope with kids;

more time deciding

what to wear

than clearing the closet

of stuff that has hung

unused for years

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

forgot password?

“Take care that you do not forget the Lord your God,” Deuteronomy 8:11a

when we can’t recall

all of our passwords,

pins, logins, and codes,

without some sort of

cheat sheet, how

in the world will

we remember you,

Loving God, much less

your grace, love,

hope, and peace

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman 

question answered

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Luke 9:20a

you are

the brokenness

that makes us whole;

the weakness

that gives us strength;

the foolishness

that makes us aware;

the emptiness

that fills our hollow souls;

the one

who makes us family

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

generosity

”Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, ‘Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land.’”  Deuteronomy 15:11

remind us, O God,

that it is not

the poor who

need our generosity

in order for their

lives to be transformed,

it is us

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

shepherd

“He makes me lie down in green pastures;
     he leads me beside still waters;
     he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths
    for his name’s sake.”  Psalm 23:2-3

God,

grant me the

serenity

to take breaks

from the internet; the

courage

to ignore the trolls

on social media;

and the

wisdom

to come in

from the

twitterstorms

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

manna

“Instead of these things you gave your people food of angels” Wisdom of Solomon 16:20a

you could have offered

days old loaves, but

give us the bread of life;

you could give us

sour vinegar to drink, but

pour the cup of grace

and hand it to us in love

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

legionnaire

 “Jesus then asked him, ‘What is your name?’ He said, ‘Legion’; for many demons had entered him.” Luke 8:30

if we turn

all our fiends

into friends, and

see imps as but

playground pals,

we might end up

on the landfills of life

wishing someone could

recycle us

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

promise

^“ I will rejoice in doing good to them, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.”  Jeremiah 32:41

while we hope (no,

ache) for your judgment

to rain down upon others,

you are sending rescuers

to flood victims, bringing

healing to the broken,

gathering the lonely into

communities of hope, all

those things you promise

to do, despite our getting

in the way

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

knucklebones

“Ah Lord God! It is you who made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.”  Jeremiah 32:17

convinced you cannot

win at knucklebones, we

dump all our silliness,

our hurtful words and deeds,

our spite and malice

on the floor, but you simply

sit cross legged and while

tossing grace into the air,

gather up everything

with a single sweep of your hand,

grinning at us knuckleheads.

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

herbs

“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer everyone.” Colossians 4:6

without the fresh

herbs of your grace,

peace, and hope, our

words become bland

and unappetizing fare

for everyone to whom

we offer them.

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

crofter

“for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me.” Wisdom of Solomon 7:22a

you put down the hammer and saw,

you step away from the loom,

you lay aside the quilting squares

to gather us on

your lap, to trace the words

with your fingers

we begin to learn how to

read the faces of others,

listen to the whispers of their souls,

hold their wounded hearts in ours,

freely give away all the

grace, hope, peace, and joy

you share with us every moment.

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

dress code

“As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.”  Colossians 3:12

no scritto shoes,

   but scuffed work boots;

no armani suits or yves dresses,

   but faded denims covered

   with sawdust;

no gucci caps,

   but a straw hat

   stained with sweat,

these are the garments

you lay out for us

each and every day

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

future

“there is hope for your future,

                     says the LORD:” Jeremiah 31:17a

while we are preparing

for our retirement

with all sorts of funds,

stock options, second homes,

and travel agents on speed dial,

God is putting all our eggs in

hope’s basket

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

float like a butterfly

“or as, when a bird flies through the air,
no evidence of its passage is found;”  Wisdom of Solomon 5:11

we cannot see grace

coming toward us, until

it lights gently upon our souls

like a butterfly carried

on the gentle breezes

of the Spirit all around us.

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

word crumbs

“But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return . . . Be merciful . . .”  Luke 6: 35a, 36a

we spend so much time

talking the walk, yet

keep our wallets hidden away,

offering a rigid back to others,

hurling invective at those we can’t stand,

choosing to do wrong every chance we get,

and so miss the word crumbs

you have left on the path

which would lead us to grace

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

telling

“Come and hear, all you who fear

         God,

   and I will tell what he has

         done for me.” Psalm 66:16

we could sing

of your love which

sustains us, tell

how your grace

is like a shawl

when we shiver in grief,

and whisper of your

wonders dancing across

our lawns, but

words just don’t seem

to spring forth from us

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

blessed

“May you be blessed by the

         LORD,

   who made heaven and

         earth.”  Psalm 115:15

convinced

that blessings come

all new, shiny, and

ginormous, we miss

the dog chasing the stick,

the little girl blowing bubbles,

the leaves rustling in the breeze,

the snail creeping along,

the stars keeping watch

in the night

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

kindness

“For wisdom is a kindly spirit,” Wisdom of Solomon 1:6a

when we scrape our

lives running down

the sidewalks of foolishness,

or stub our hearts

as we try to find

our way back to you

through the shadows

of our fears, Spirit

kneels down and daubs

our wounds with grace,

and whispers hope into

our tear-stained souls

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

choices

“When he saw Jesus, he bowed with his face to the ground and begged him, “Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean.”  Luke 5:12b

Lord,

we could

eradicate injustice,

lift up those tossed aside,

comfort the broken-hearted,

and so much more, but

we are consumed

with silly choices.

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

keepers

“Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” 1 John 5:21

glowing devices and

plastic cards

   fit so easily

   in our hands;

envy, prejudice,

fear, greed

   rest so comfortably

   in our souls;

anger, bitterness,

judgment, hurt

   leap so quickly

   to our lips;

how can we not

keep

these so close to us?

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

codex

“Immediately the fingers of a human hand appeared and began writing on the plaster of the wall of the royal palace, next to the lampstand.  The king was watching the hand as it wrote.” Daniel 5:5

no matter how hard

we try, we cannot

redact grace from

   hearts,

wipe the hard drive

   of our souls of hope,

change the password

   which allows access

   to your love,

re-code your mercy

   into judgment

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

breaking news

“And a report about him began to reach every place in the region.” Luke 4:37

when we hear reports

about hope bursting

the levees of injustice

and flooding oppression’s

streets, or

grace being born

to families across town,

we simply tweet

“Fake news!

SAD!!”

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

anointing

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon

         me

    because he has anointed me” Luke 4:18a

anoint us, Holy Spirit,

with the balm of compassion

   for bullied kids;

with the oil of hope

   for the broken-hearted;

with the salve of peace

   for the victims of violence;

the embrocation of justice

   for the oppressed;

the lotion of freedom

   for the imprisoned

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman 

hesed

“Above all, maintain constant love for one another,” 1 Peter 4:8a

not just at weddings,

or saying goodnight

   before turning out the lights;

not just a hurried kiss

before rushing off

to school, work, a run;

not just a word,

a card, a gift,

   or emoji, but

never-ending,

bending-but-not-breaking,

always faithful though fallible,

wrapping another like a quilt

but giving them space to breathe

love

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

flintless

“who turns the rock into a pool of

         water,

   the flint into a spring of water.” Psalm 114:8

may the warmth

of your grace melt

our frozen hearts

   into fountains of compassion,

our hard-as-nails

stubbornness into

acts of unparalleled

generosity

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

revelation

“Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed.  What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is.” 1 John 3:2

it is in the

vulnerable, not

the victorious;

in the struggling,

not the successful;

in the overworked, not

the one-percenters,

that we will find

you revealed most

clearly

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

abide

“Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you.” 1 John 2:24a

when we think

we can live in

your heart’s basement

playing video games

all day long, you hand

us a list of chores:

offer hope to the broken,

stick pain in the bin by the curb,

pour grace for the lonely,

run toward hate when

it rears its ugly head

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman

not always

“For the needy shall not always

         be forgotten,

   nor the hope of the poor

         perish forever.” Psalm 9:18

while we zip by

the family on the side

of the road, you pull over

   to see how you can help;

while we toss hope

into the compost bin, so

it can fertilize our fears,

   you resurrect it

   to new life and

   spread it over the poor.

© 2019 Thom M. Shuman