fifth wednesday in lent

“And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, ‘Why does this generation ask for a sign?’” Mark 8:12a

the teachers in a convoy

of cars driving through

their students’ neighborhood

to let them know they are loved

beyond measure (not just missed);

the police stopping folks

to offer them a roll of toilet paper

rather than a ticket;

the grocery chain ordering pizza

for all its employees as

a great big thank you (as

well as helping out the pizza folks):

how many more signs

do we need that

grace

is afoot in our days?

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

fourth tuesday in lent

“For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.” 1 Corinthians 11:26

in emptied sanctuaries

with the techie a safe distance,

with a few saltine crackers

and a glass of orange juice,

around a kitchen table and

hearing the words online,

with a slice of whole wheat

and a glass of milk,

gathered in a living room

or sheltered in a lonely apartment,

we proclaim your death,

O Lord,

even as we await the promise

of new days, new hope, new life,

when we are called from the tomb

of isolation

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

fourth monday in lent

“He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, ‘Ephphatha,’ that is, ‘Be opened.’  And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly.”  Mark 7:33-35

remove the fearwax

so

we may hear your

whispers of hope

and

tell others of your

grace that surrounds

us in these moments

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

fourth sunday in lent

"For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.”  Romans 8:14

lead us, Spirit of healing,

into solitude for the good

of our communities;

lead us, Spirit of grace,

into acts of remote kindness,

enriching the lives of those

we cannot touch physically;

lead us, Spirit of peace,

into gentle places of hope

where we can rest in your serenity,

even as we wait for that time

when we can be, once more,

one with all of God’s children.

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

fourth saturday in lent

“But I trust in you, O Lord;

    I say, ‘You are my God.
 My times are in your hand;” Psalm 31:14-15a

as moment drifts

into moment, and

one day slides

into the next, as

the future seems

more uncertain

than ever before,

remind us that we

are cradled in the hands

of the Time Maker

and Keeper of our Moments,

who will not let us slip

through your fingers

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

fourth friday in lent

“for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.’”  Mark 6:50

in our worries,

let us not overlook you

in the person shopping

for all her neighbors;

in our terrors,

let us not fail to notice you

in the health care providers

working extra hours;

in our enforced solitude,

let us not look past you

waving at us across

the courtyard, backyard,

hospital hallway, grocery store,

using sign language to tell us,

‘i love you’

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

fourth thursday in lent

“ Do not hide your face from me.

Do not turn your servant away in anger,
    you who have been my help.
Do not cast me off, do not forsake me,
    O God of my salvation!”  Psalm 27:9

there!

in the compassionate eyes

of the nurse behind

the protective mask;

there!

in the young person

who knocks on the door

asking what they can bring us;

there!

in the kids across the street

who sit on their porches

playing music for their

neighbors . . .

there!

we see your face!

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

fourth wednesday in lent

“O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;

    in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch.” Psalm 5:3

for little kids waking up

cranky and weary (already)

of a new routine;

for parents struggling

to be teachers of stuff

they had forgotten years ago;

for researchers cracking weary spines

and trying not to touch aching eyes,

searching for a new vaccine,

a quicker way to diagnose;

for those whose isolation

is a prison sentence, and

those who would serve right beside them

in nursing homes, and hospital rooms;

for those whose tapping feet

long to take them out into a world

they know they must avoid;

for all and every, for each and one,

we pray, O Lord,

hear our voices

hear our hearts

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

third tuesday in lent

“‘Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?’” Mark 6:3

you watch

(not trying to laugh)

as we hammer our thumbs,

saw boards too short,

get so much glue on our hands

that our fingers stick together;

then you come

in your sawdusty coveralls,

your sweat stained hat,

your faded corduroy shirt, and

mend the cracks in our relationships,

clear the pipes so 

living water flows freely,

caulk the windows in our hearts

so that the evil one’s cold breath

cannot slip in, then mopping your face

and washing your hands, you ask,

“got anything to eat

for a hunger handyman?”

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

third monday in lent

“May integrity and uprightness preserve me,

    for I wait for you.”  Psalm 25:21

noticing my twitching knees

and shuffling feet, new friends

Honor and Justice

each grab a hand, so

i can’t dart into the street

before you blow the whistle,

stopping temptation’s busy traffic,

so that we can cross

over to Eden’s playground

safely

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

third sunday in lent

“When shall I come and behold

    the face of God?” Psalm 42:2b

in the weary face

of the stocker who patiently

tells a customer, “i’m sorry,

we’re out and hope for more

to arrive tomorrow,” and then

repeats it 500 more times,

in the lined visage

of the staff caring for

the most vulnerable who

do not understand their isolation,

on the tear-stained cheeks

of the wife holding her hand

against the window with her

husband’s hand pressing

the other side, because she

cannot visit the nursing home,

we see your face, O God,

if we dare to take notice

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

third saturday in lent

“My times are in your hand;

    deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors” Psalm 31:15

when the world would knock me

over with a shopping cart to get

the last package of toilet paper,

when the angry voices holler at me

to turn my back on your future,

when people point a finger at me

and accuse me of preaching

perspective over panic,

remind me that these moments,

like all time, are measured by

your grace and hope, not

our foolish fears and worries

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

third friday in lent

“But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’”  Mark 4:38

when the waves of worry

threaten to sink our hearts

and the thunder of rumors

rattles the windows of our souls,

we look to see if you care, but

you are working 24/7

on a vaccine for the world,

handing out grocery bags

full of hope to those who

found all the shelves stripped

by the hoarders,

stretching your aching back

and rubbing tired feet, before

heading back on your shift

in the hospitals

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

third thursday in lent

“But you, O Lord, are enthroned forever;

    your name endures to all generations.” Psalm 102:12

when you could stay

in your jammies, stretched

out in the recliner watching

the game and talk shows

the rest of the day, you

pull on your jeans, muddy work

boots and frayed, corduroy shirt,

gulping the last of your coffee

and grabbing your lunch box

as you head out the door to

feed the folks standing at

the kitchen doors of restaurants,

listen to the broken hearts

of the kids at the bus stops,

walk the assisted living hallways

with all those who have been

abandoned by everything but

their memories, tagging after them

like fading shadows

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

third wednesday in Lent

“If my father and mother forsake me,

    the Lord will take me up.”  Psalm 27:10

we come home

only to find a suitcase

(containing all we have)

on the front porch, a note

telling us all the locks

have been changed, and

through the tears, we

can barely see you sitting

in your banged-up, rusting

pickup, until you throw open

the passenger door, hollering

‘hop in!  let’s go hang out

at my place!  I’ve got plenty

of extra space.’ 

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

second tuesday in lent

“Lead me in your truth, and teach me,

    for you are the God of my salvation;
    for you I wait all day long.”  Psalm 25:5

though pock-marked with

bullet holes and hanging by

a single, rusted nail, i followed

the sign pointing down candor’s path,

and i was not disappointed

where it leads me.

though friends laugh, strangers

turn away in disbelief, and

the world mocks, i believe

you are the way for me,

and i will not be disappointed.

though the seconds tick slowly

the minutes move at snail’s pace

and the hours seem

to be more than 24, i wait,

and am not disappointed

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

second monday in lent

“Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Quite apart from us you have become kings! Indeed, I wish that you had become kings, so that we might be kings with you!” 1 Corinthians 4:8

that’s the problem

with you, God – you

expect us to be satisfied

with what we already have,

while we look around

and see only the things

we don’t hold onto and

want to clasp in our tight

greedy grasp

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

second sunday in lent

“My soul thirsts for God,

    for the living God.”  Psalm 42:2

knowing how parched

is my soul, the barkeep

pulls out the bottle of aged

death, nodding as he starts

to pour, then smiling as i say,

‘make it a double,’

not noticing you outside,

handing out bottles of life

distilled in your heart

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

second saturday in lent

“For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you received it, why do you boast as if it were not a gift?”  1 Corinthians 4:7

when my words

are as bitter as

the next person’s;

when my anger

is as raw as those

raging in public forums;

when my fears

comfort me more

than my faith, well,

why should anyone

notice anything different

enough that they want

to listen to me,

draw close to me,

share with me?

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

second friday in lent

“Do not deceive yourselves. If you think that you are wise in this age, you should become fools so that you may become wise.”  1 Corinthians 3:18

holding up a mirror

for us, your smile gets

bigger and bigger as we

don the greasepaint, red noses,

rainbow hair, baggy pants,

size 23 shoes, and then we

all squeeze in next to you

in grace’s teeny tiny car,

racing around, squirting people

with seltzer bottles full of hope

every chance we get, and putting

big grins on people’s faces

as we show that the real fools

are those who discover that

goodness is stronger than evil,

peace is better than war,

a hug is the welcome everyone needs,

and that you are the biggest fool

of all, because you trust us

with the message of love to the world

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

second thursday in lent

“Hear my prayer, O Lord;

    let my cry come to you.
 Do not hide your face from me
    in the day of my distress.
Incline your ear to me;
    answer me speedily in the day when I call.”  Psalm 102:1-2

no matter what we do,

you will not turn away

from us.

no matter what we say,

you refuse to put cotton

in your ears.

no matter how far

we push you from us,

you keep coming to us

step

by patient

step

by gracious

step

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

second wednesday in lent

“When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God to you in lofty words or wisdom.” 1 Corinthians 2:1

not in hifalutin sermons,

but in soft whispers of love,

not in books so thick we can’t hold them,

but in words written in the sand,

not in detective stories with too many clues,

but the simple declaration

at the end of all time,

“I told you not to be afraid,”

as we are swept up in God’s arms

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

first tuesday in lent

“For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.” 1 Corinthians 1:25

as we pass you

on the beach, we

start sniggering at the

95-pound weakling who

can’t string two words together

or look anyone in the eye, not

noticing that you are the one

teaching little children the words

to every song about grace,

running into the surf

to rescue us from our foibles,

lifting us to our feet when

we slip on the banana peels

life tosses in front of us

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

first monday in lent

“And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness.”  Mark 1:12 

as soon as we get

the confirmation email

with the guaranteed (lowest)

rate, the king-size suite (with

free wi-fi, complimentary breakfast,

and the manager’s cocktail hour

included), why of course

we will leave for the

wilderness,

Holy God . . .

immediately

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

first sunday in lent

“Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, O righteous,

    and shout for joy, all you upright in heart.” Psalm 32:11

on this feast day,

i would take home

a doggy bag filled with grace,

box up all the hope

left on the plate

for my lunch all week,

gather up the crumbs

of peace to sprinkle them

on my cereal each morning,

and dance all through the day,

even if i can find no partner

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

first saturday in lent

“My holy name I will make known among my people Israel;” Ezekiel 39:7a 

sung at evensong in cathedrals

and rapped by street corner singers,

muttered on gurneys

being wheeled into operating rooms

and breathed by nurses and doctors

as they pick up their instruments,

tossed back and forth like bean bags

by kids in a preschool classroom

and whispered into lovers’ ears

at a dance for senior citizens,

fingered into sand by a reluctant teacher

and shouted by one freed from foolishness:

your name, Holy of Holies,

is uttered, guttered, prayed, praised,

dancing, swirling, curling, unfurling

all around us!

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman

first friday in lent

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

    Why are you so far from helping me,

    from the words of my groaning?”  Psalm 22:1

why

have we forgotten

those who stand

at the side of the road,

huddling in fear, as

we speed by in our privilege?

why

have we turned

a deaf ear to the sobs

of parents who cannot

feed their kids a decent meal,

while we let the server

take away half-eaten dishes?

why

do we keep our hand

in our pockets when

given any, and every,

chance to reach out

to someone who is lonely?

why

indeed,

O God, our God?

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman