January 16th

"I pour out my complaint before him;
     I tell my trouble before him.” Psalm 142:2

maybe,
when we step
to the other side of grace,
God will explain everything.
those nagging questions which
tickle us awake at night,
the irreparable divisions
we cannot seem to bridge,
the suffering we cannot dismiss
as easily as the privileged seem to do.
someday,
when we step
to the other side of grace,
God will explain everything.
so, until then,
let us love as expansively
as Jesus did,
let us harvest the hope
planted deep within us,
let us be that grace-companion
someone is desperately needing
for these are all we have
to offer until we step
to the other side of
grace.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo:@Thom-Shuman

January 15th

“Nathanael asked him, "Where did you come to know me?" John 1:48a

that’s the question, isn’t it?
the one folded up
in the back pocket of doubt.
‘have we met before?’
it is as if someone recognizes us
by accident, thinking
we’re someone else, as if
we need to be introduced to love.
but Jesus doesn’t pull up a selfie
or a bunch of text messages,
it’s simply the fact that
he saw us when we were lost,
with no memorized answers,
no hiding place no one else knows,
no practiced explanations.
you see, we are not discovered
because we know the right questions,
or come from the right family,
or went to the best schools,
but grace keeping an eye out for us,
recognizing us long before
we catch a glimpse of love—
a holy surprise.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

January 14th

 “If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is lurking at the door; its desire is for you, but you must master it." Genesis 4:7

like kids coming to our doors
on Halloween
you show up—
the speaker garbed in
sparkling robes of charisma.
that new friend who, out of
the goodness of their hearts,
invites us to get in on a great deal.
a co-worker whose flirting
behavior slowly draws us
into a web of betrayal.
some clown wearing silly hair
and enough make-up
to cover the cruelty which
is at the heart of their act.
but when the robe is off,
and the dream of riches turns to dust,
when our hearts are shattered
and the make-up removed,
we recognize you—
that master of disguises
who has fooled more people
than will ever admit it.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

January 13th

“I lie awake;
     I am like a lonely bird on the housetop.” Psalm 102:7

night stretches its cloak
over the neighborhood,
as, like a little bird
nestling alone on a rooftop,
i lie awake, tiny enough
so no one notices me,
light enough to be blown away
like the stardust drifting down.
watching the shadows behind
the glowing windows below,
i listen to the pauses
in the heartbeats of life,
and watch over worries
that tiptoe down the streets.
but even in these thin hours,
knowing the ache (as do
so many) of being unseen—
you find me, you find us!
sitting beside our sleeplessness,
offering grace to nourish us,
teaching us that loneliness
is where love waits patiently
to gather us like a parent.
and so, we will rest,
no longer afraid, for you
never forget even the
loneliest of us.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

January 12th

“For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; 

    evil will not sojourn with you.” Psalm 5:4

you have no truck
with those who rely
on their personal morality.
just as you have always done,
you roundly condemn (and
hold accountable) those who
claim some sort of divine anointing
yet like to roll around in muck.
you refuse to be a landlord
for all who traffic in shadows
and never put a place setting
at the table for cruelty.
you will not let evil and anger
become members of your entourage
nor do you pretend hate is holy
or offer lodging to lies.
simply put, you take no pleasure
in words spiked with razor-like barbs,
with our excuses for soft violence,
those sins disguised as good choices.
not because you are prim and proper
but because you love too deeply
to let us drink cups of poison
or eat bread kneaded
with the yeast of bitterness.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

January 11th

"Then God said, 'Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness;'" Genesis 1:26a

vision to search out
the furthest galaxies
and to catch a glimpse
of a widow weeping
on her front porch,
hearing to listen to
the cries of the forgotten
and to hearken to that
still small voice in our soul,
hands to reach down
and lift the fallen, as well
as to be grabbed by a
teetering toddler,
feet to run towards those
who are losing their
tenuous grip on hope
and to walk quietly in
the corridors of hospice,
hearts to open wide
to welcome the strangers
and to break in grief
with our closest friends,
souls to know the gentle
touch of wisdom from a
person slipping into dementia
and to be healed by
the butterfly kisses of little kids,
these are the pieces of you
planted deep within each of us,
by your grace, Imaginative God.

(c) Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

January 10th

“I was ready to be sought out by those who did not ask, to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, "Here I am, here I am," to a nation that did not call on my name.” Isaiah 65:1

when we were waiting for certainty
you kept taking chances on us,
before we knew your name
you had memorized ours.
when we wandered aimlessly
you turned your heart toward the road,
before we knocked
you stood in the doorway.
when we didn’t know where to look
you were keeping an eye on us,
before we knew the words we needed,
you bent down to learn our language.
for that is the way you show up—
love unannounced
grace unearned
hope calling us home,
justice creating new communities.
it wasn’t thunder we heard,
but a soft breath
offering an unyielding promise--
here i am
here i am
and the silence which seemed
to push us apart echoed
with that voice which had walked
toward us the whole time.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman