140 Words Or Less

“If we’re not careful, it gets retardedly fast”.  It was Good Friday and I was talking to our worship band about the tempo of a song we were rehearsing. As the sentence left my mouth I wanted to grab it and shove it back in. I could have used a dozen different non-derogatory words that actually exist, but out popped “retardedly”.   My original angle for this blog post was how I’m glad I’m not actually famous because in our “Twitter Mob” society, a slip of the tongue like that can cost you a career. I didn’t actually write it because it did nothing but prove that however good I think I am, I’m awful enough that even when I speak hurtful, unthinking words about beautiful, God-created people, the person I’m still most worried about having hurt is myself.   Word Count: 140 

My grandfather once wrote a letter to my brother and I about a picture he'd seen of our band, Scarlet Tag (The name could have been much worse. In true evangelical teenager fashion, our alternative idea was Rare Pearls). His issue was that our band looked too unhappy and rebellious. He felt that our faces should display the joy that comes from knowing Jesus instead of copying the cynical attitude of the rock stars of "the world". To illustrate, he sent along a photo of one of those travelling family gospel groups, with big smiles, heavy make-up and lots of hands resting gently on shoulders. I hated that picture because it represented everything 19 year old me was beginning to despise about Christianity. I remember fighting with my Dad in the car on the way to church one morning and him lamenting that he would now have to "pretend to be happy". The smiles in that picture were the same smile my Dad wore on the platform that Sunday. I promised myself that I was

Jesus once encountered a man born blind.  The disciples asked Jesus "Who's sin caused this man's blindness, his parents or his own?"  Jesus told them "Neither...but this happened so Gods work might be displayed in him".  After Jesus healed the man, the Pharisees, convinced that Jesus was a sinner, tried to persuade the formerly blind man to deny that it was Jesus who healed him.  When he refused, they banished him from the temple. By looking for sin in the life of the blind man, the disciples failed to see the possibility of God at work in their midst.  By looking for sin in the life of Jesus, the Pharisees failed to see God Himself present in their midst. If we are blind, it’s possible that sin is the culprit.  More likely, our self-righteousness and judgmental attitudes are to blame.  Word Count: 140 

World Vision has recently amended their hiring to policy to allow professing Christians in married homosexual relationships to be employees in their organization.  Predictably, some more fundamentalist Christians are upset, threatening to pull their sponsorships and boycott World Vision.   In the story of "The Good Samaritan", Jesus makes the case that actions matter more than beliefs and that morality without justice is useless. By failing to help the man beaten on the side of the road, the upstanding, right believing Priest and Levite are revealed to know less about God's heart towards people then the despised, outsider Samaritan.   Personally, I believe that even if an organization was run by hedonistic, occult practicing, satan worshiping witches, Jesus would still want us to give them our money if it meant that the life of an impoverished child was improved.  Word Count: 139

What do u think? If u r on staff @ a church u should attend functions the church puts on, men @ the mens events, ladies @ the ladies events — Fraser Morse (@FraserMorse) February 25, 2014 My friend tweeted this yesterday and argued that “non-attendance” by pastors was poor leadership: To me, the issue isn’t leadership, it’s vision. As the torch-bearer of the church’s mission, any pastor who won’t give selflessly of their time and energy to make that vision a reality shouldn’t be in ministry. Likewise, a church with a clear vision of their God given identity and role wouldn’t want to waste precious resources on events that didn’t directly further their mission. What many pastors dread  is giving up their personal time to attend one more breakfast/prayer meeting/social gathering that’s nothing more then a “holy huddle” filling the social calendars of existing believers. If your pastors aren’t attending, they’re either unqualified or they understand what the church lacks t

***We're blowing past the 140 word limit in this post because some stories simply require more words.  When I was 14, there was this girl that I really liked.  The first time I really noticed her, she was sitting a couple rows in front of me at church and I was smitten by her straight, long brown hair and her luminous smile.  We caught each other sneaking glances during service and after church we played that game where you pretend to avoid the other person while also trying to accidentally run into them at the same time.   It turned out she was one of those high school girls with a college boyfriend but he lived in another city so I figured my chances were solid.  For the next few months I played the "friend" card, hanging out, chatting on the phone and pretending to be sympathetic when she told me about her relationship troubles.  I remember sitting on the floor of her apartment, watching TV with some friends and rubbing her sock covered feet, which, in retrospect,

  My favourite seat is at the back because it allows me to be present and distant at the same time. I prefer to participate without having to assimilate.  The benefit of being the outsider is that it gives me the perspective to see all sides of an issue because I am not beholden to those promoting a cause or those criticising it.   I'm becoming aware that the danger of the outsider role is that it promotes cynicism and allows me shirk responsibility.  By remaining on the margins, I can reap the benefits yet avoid the responsibility of real commitment.  If things aren't to my liking, I can wipe my hands and wag my finger.  The question is, by wanting to avoid being trapped on a sinking ship am I condemning myself to a life of never actually leaving the shore? Word Count: 140

I’m a part of a group of twenty-somethings who meet regularly to talk about life, faith and milking cows (don’t ask).  This week it came to light that between the ten of us present, we own approximately 1560 articles of clothing (not including things like underwear, scarves, socks).  If each item averages $20, that means our group has spent over $31,000 on clothes.   Which raises the question; would any of our lives be significantly worse off if we owned half of the clothes we do?   Because, if we cut our clothes spending in half, what amazing things could ten socially conscious, creative young adults do with $15,000 to make the world a better place? We can’t get a refund on what we’ve spent in the past but tomorrow doesn’t have to be like yesterday. Word Count: 139

I once attended a church with a pastor who was pulling a Jay Leno.  Over the years he’d developed a large and loyal following but as he approached retirement age, his act was growing stale.  He had overstayed his welcome but had no plans of moving on. The division in the church over what to do was predominantly split along age lines, with the older traditionalists wanting him to stay and the younger progressives hoping he'd be replaced.   As Steve Hyden points out , these sorts of “Generational wars aren’t won on the basis of better ideas...They are rigged contests that favor the young 100 percent of the time.” So the departure of Leno and that pastor shouldn’t be cause for celebration.  It just means my generation is one step closer to becoming that guy everyone wishes would leave already. Word Count: 140