The Peeps Who Played With Matches

baby-chicks

Once upon a time there was a mother hen who had a brood of chicks. They lived in a large barnyard surrounded by a field. Her chicks were cute, cuddly, and LOUD. Their constant peeping could always be heard, no matter where you were in the barnyard. Their mother thought of them as her “precious [...]

The Custodian and the Curator

Once upon a time there was a custodian who worked at a popular museum. He regarded with contempt the mindless tourists and pretentious art aficionados who sullied his shiny floors as they walked back and forth, ogling the overrated works of art on display. How he longed to hijack a tour and teach them to [...]

Fearful Unto Death

The following is based on a true story. . . ***** It was summer and the old man was curled in a fetal position under a heavy quilt. He was upset. He’d been having hard dreams that left him confused. He dreamt she was sick, but was going to get better. He dreamt she was [...]

Overheard At The Airport

A guy tossed his cup into a trash can as a janitor was changing the bag. The guy said to the janitor, “Are you having a good day?” The janitor said that he was. The guy continued, “Thanks for what you’re doing. This airport looks great.” The janitor looked at the guy like he was [...]

Mysterious Ways: A Short Story

Mysterious4

Beads of sweat stood at attention on Pastor Burt’s forehead. When he looked down to read, they joined forces and raced down the bridge of his nose like an Olympic ski jumper, finally splattering on the worn pages of scripture he was holding chest high. Burt’s voice boomed over the sound system as he read [...]

Waiting For Greatness

I’m doing the #Trust30 writing challenge. You can read more about it here. Every day, for the next 30 days, I’ll respond to a writing prompt and post (most of) what I write here on the blog. Here is the first prompt: We are afraid of truth, afraid of fortune, afraid of death, and afraid [...]

Sydney Saved The Day

Here’s a little story I’ve been sitting on until I felt like it was time to tell it. One of the hardest things in the months immediately after we shut down the church plant was going back to church. Mainly because of embarrassment. We visited several churches during that time and the one that made [...]

An Exercise in Absurdity

I recently did a writing exercise recommended by Natalie Goldberg in Writing Down the Bones. I sat in Starbucks with an open newspaper and started combining random ideas and images to form the most absurd vignettes possible. Here are a few of my favorites. ***** A carpenter built a home out of cinnamon sticks and [...]

Our Ships Are Burning!

“What is that smoke over there?” “It’s our ships. They’re burning.” “Who set them on fire?” “I did.”

Two Men Went To The Temple To Pray

Two men went to the temple to pray. One was an American Christian and the other a Pharisee. The American Christian stood tall, and with outstretched arms, prayed, “Lord God, thank you for allowing me to be born in this great country and for making me who I am. I could have been born in [...]