YOU ARE MADE1

you are made, my child, my Belovedfrom water and dustboth holyboth mine.

—poem by Slats Toole

written by: slats toole | sanctifiedart.org | 1

SINGING THROUGH THE WILDERNESS

p o e t r y f o r h o ly w e e k s e r v i c e

o r i g i n a l p o e t r y b y s l a t s t o o l e

These are the original poems found in our “Singing Through the Wilderness” service for Holy Week. We have formatted each poem separately for you to print and make copies for worship leaders.

When reading and sharing these poems in worship, please attribute credit as follows: Poetry by Slats Toole | A Sanctified Art LLC | sanctifiedart.org.

1 Print and make copies of this poem to place at the hand washing stations. Encourage worshipers to speak these words aloud to their neighbors as they wash each other’s hands.

IT BEGINS WITH GRACE2

written by: slats toole | sanctifiedart.org | 2

it begins with grace.

it begins with graceand ends with graceand it is so deeply importantto know thatwe are carried throughby grace

because this road gets hardthe road to redemptionthe road to resurrectionis the road of uneven groundof roots that trip usand rocks that make us slipand falland it is hard to get back up againto keep going.

it is a road that seems to have no endthat turns back in on itself,disorienting,discouraging,destroying.

it is everything we fear about the wilderness.

but here at the beginningwe are met with grace.right when it is about to come crashing downhere is bread for the journeyand a cup for the way.

here on the night of betrayalour Savior Jesus Christ took breadand blessed itand broke it

and gave it to the disciplessaying, "this is my bodybroken for you.do this in remembrance of me."

and here on the night where there is no turning backour Savior Jesus Christ took the cupand blessed itand gave it to the disciplessaying, "this is my bloodshed for you.do this in remembrance of me."

and so we gatherand so we rememberand so we tell the story of a roadwe do not have to walkourselves.

this is grace.the table that is spread for usin the middle of the wildernessthe reminder that our job is not to sufferbut to love one another.our call is not to lonelinessbut connectionour fate is not deathbut life.

so come to this table.let this remindersink into your body:there is nothingno betrayalno denialno sinthat grace cannot cover.

2 This poem is offered in the liturgy for Holy Communion.