When I was in hotel school they used to drill the phrase “exceed the guest’s expectations” into us all the time. It was never enough to do what the guest asked; we were pushed to always go “above and beyond” the call of duty. As a believer I have found that this lesson also applies in how we live our lives because let’s be honest, doing the bare minimum of what Christ has asked us [...]
The other day i wrote a poem titled 'to them who have ears' and just thinking about it a little more today, have dubbed it a choir poem - as in those who get what it's about and who agree will totally be reading and nodding and cheering and liking and sharing... but those who don't, are unlikely to even read it and if they somehow do, unlikely to understand the point trying to be made... [...]
i hate white people! i know, i know, i could barely believe it myself when i found out, but having heard so many people suggest it on my blog the past week or two [some in comments i chose not to print due to their not-fit-to-be-read-by-other-humans content] it really must be true. It started when i started suggesting that i don't think white people are better than black people [if i had a dollar for [...]
Too often, it has been the arrival of the question that has instantly muted the conversation. As i have sought to write [and invite others to] about topics such as Race and Reconciliation, the Church, Relationships and more, it has been disappointing to me how often a term [White Privilege] or phrase [We aren't currently part of a local church congregation] or idea [No sex before marriage] has sent people scurrying off back to where people [...]
It is 2 days to go til 2015. In some ways, most ways actually, nothing really changes when the clock hand ticks off that final second. As a South African, i can be assured that Australians, New Zealanders and more have been experiencing 2015 for hours, and that it will be another ten hours after i do before my friends in Oakland, where we lived for more than half of this year, will be arriving [...]
Tis the season to be jolly, fa la la la la, la la, screw you! Something like that, right? Or maybe more appropriately, 'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...' Yesterday i commented on the Book of Faces how amazing it was to be reading through my newsfeed and just reading positive, grateful-sounding stuff. Heck, even a death message to mourn Joe Cocker was made to sound appreciative. But then [...]
This is an interesting psalm: the heading in my bible says, 'Of Solomon' and yet verse 29 says 'this concludes the prayers of David, son of Jesse' so who actually wrote it? And if you read the psalm it is talking about the king and how great he is going to be, so if Solomon did write this himself then it seems to smack of a little bit of 'Look at me! Look how great [...]
i am almost overwhelmed by the amount of posts i have been discovering or people have been linking me to when it comes to race. What has been amazing has been so many of them have been so incredibly good. i imagine there are a lot of people who see 'Anothe ace post by Brett Fish' and roll their eyes or reach for the unsubscribe. But i am confident that there are enough people following [...]
i never particularly wanted to go to Robben Island. in fact, to be honest, for a time i particularly didn't want to go to Robben Island. Something about growing up in a not too politicized environment perhaps and then later not really seeing the point or perhaps thinking it was a 'flavour of the month' kind of vibe with everyone going and it being such a touristy thing. But then somewhere along the line [maybe [...]
This morning i was browsing Facebook and i came upon a status from my friend Nkosivumile Gola [who has written a number of posts for this blog] that read like this: The land question is very personal, the land includes my whole being it is the very me. The land question is very emotional its not an intellectual talk. I don't have a nice way of saying we want the land, I can't smile when [...]