January 17th

"I am the LORD, I have called
   you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the
   hand and kept you;
I have given you as a
   covenant to the people,
a light to the nations,"  Isaiah 42:6

when i think i am

destined to be an influencer,

call me to be insignificant.

when i focus too much

on how many likes i accumulate,

call me to walk with the lonely.

when i want a desk 

in the big corner office,

call me to be the night manager

at the homeless shelter.

when i want to fill my walls

with plaques, diplomas, awards,

and photos with the richly famous,

call me to be as forgotten as those

i rush past on my ill-chosen

path to imagined glory and success.

(c) 2025 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

January 16th

"So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth, called 'the uncircumcision' by those who are called 'the circumcision' —a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands— remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world." Ephesians 2:11-12

we probably have forgotten
but there was that moment

when we found ourselves lost

and someone came to find us,

when we sat alone at a table

and a stranger came over 

to share a quiet talk with us,

when we felt like orphans

and a family took us in as

if we were long lost kin,

when we were hungry 

and a child walked over

to share from their lunch,

when we were treated 

as pariahs by the privileged

and the vulnerable came over

and wrapped arms around us.

so then, let us dip deep 

into the wells of our memories

and share such grace with

the outsiders all around us.

(c) 2025 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

January 15th

"For I, the LORD your God,
   hold your right hand;
it is I who say to you, 'Do
   not fear,
I will help you.'” Isaiah 41:13

when anger comes bursting

out of nowhere like a wildfire

wanting to turn us to ashes,

you don the turnout gear

to pump living waters to put it out.

when those who claim to love us

suddenly turn a shoulder which

is colder than an arctic blast our way,

you quickly knit a shawl

to wrap around our hearts.

whenever the world get in

our faces threatening to knock

us flat on our back,

you gently caress our souls,

whispering,

'take no notice,

i am with you.’

(c) 2025 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

January 14th

"and he cried out, 'What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.'” Mark 1:24

we are so enthralled

with the powerful who 

forget us the moment

they move on down the line,

we never notice it is

the vulnerable who know you

as the mother hen 

who gathers her chicks 

to protect them.

we are so busy tik-tokking

with all the influencers,

we never realize the forgotten

see you as the one 

who calls them your Beloved.

we are so eager to be like

those with perfect hair, teeth,

looks, bodies, lives,

we never understand why

the broken see you as that

balm which can make them whole

because it is made out of 

the tears of your shattered heart.

(c) 2025 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

January 13th

"He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will." Ephesians 1:5

because we are your children,
sometimes you are like

a single parent working

two or three jobs to ensure

we are fed, clothed, sheltered, loved.

sometimes you are 

a same-sex couple who 

adopts special needs kids

because they know that 

love can defeat the cruelty

of the world.

sometimes you are 

a foster parent who takes in

a teenager feeling they have

run out of chances, while you

have more than they will ever need.

sometimes you are 

grandparents who set aside

all their retirement plans

to begin a journey they never

expected to take again.

(c) 2025 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

Baptism of the Lord

“You make springs gush forth in the valleys;

they flow between the hills,” Psalm 104:10

we have more then

enough grace to fill

every Olympic sized

swimming pool, yet feel

we must share it with

just a drip here, a drop there.

we have more then enough justice 

to correct every wrong in the world

and to bring everyone into

your beloved community, yet

we tighten the faucet so that

it just dribbles out to a select few.

we have more then enough 

love so we could make hate 

extinct,

but we are content with 

offering just a drop here

or a drip there.

(c) 2025 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo:@Thom-Shuman

January 11th

"I am coming soon; hold fast to what you have," Revelation 3:11a

when we are so determined
to never let go of all those 

grudges we have accumulated,

whisper to us of the grace

you slipped into our souls

when we were not watching.

when we close our fists 

around the worries we have

about the future, as if we were

to release them they would

fly back into our faces,

remind us of that future 

full of hope you hand to us

as our inheritance.

when we push others out 

of the way so we can grab

the last bit of cruelty before

the shelves are emptied,

show us the supply chain 

from your heart which, even

now, is dropping compassion

off at our doors, enough to

share with everyone we meet.

(c) 2025 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman