Because of a massive snowstorm last night, the event I was supposed to be running was cancelled.
Which meant I watched the Super Bowl. (Um, and by "watched" I mean I was down in the man-cave for the first half, ate some chips and candy, read a book at the same time, and cheered when Spike did.)
And THAT means I saw THIS.
This is an extended version, if you're interested.
And there's not a snowball's chance in aitch-ee-double-hockey-sticks
that I'm not jumping on THAT bandwagon.
And so ... I'd like to say something.
My grandma on one side could feed a crew of harvesters on a pound of ground beef, using a wood stove and a foot of counter space, in between looking after chickens and working a "garden" that city-dwellers would call a small farm. #FarmLikeAGirl
My grandma on the other side, as a young single woman, simply up and moved to downtown Toronto to work, all by herself. I didn't even KNOW that until I mentioned that we had moved to that very same area, and she smiled and perfectly described the house she had lived in, only a few blocks away, half a century before. #MakeYourOwnWayLikeAGirl
My niece holds her own with her brothers just fine, and is training to be a mechanic. #ChangeTheOilLikeAGirl
I have one cousin who's a carpenter. Another who's a mathematician-turned-California-business-consultant. Another who's an award-winning author. All girls. #BuildLikeAGirl #KickCorporateButtLikeAGirl #WriteLikeAGirl
One of my very best friends, a pastor and leader for two decades, just shifted her entire life (along with her husband) to give the very best chance to their daughter, adopted from an Indian orphanage last year. #LeapIntoTheUnknownLikeAGirl
When, as a young woman, I went to my mom (who earned an income from the time she got married at 18 until the time she retired) agonizing over whether it was "right" for me to be a pastor, to not automatically stay home with (hypothetical) kids, she gasped in classy outrage and said, "How is it possible that we are still TALKING about this?? Ridiculous. You can do whatever you WANT to do." #DismissGenderRolesLikeAGirl #WearHeelsLikeAGirl
My whole life, I've watched girls, including my sister, who became EXACTLY who they chose to be, not giving a flying fig what anyone else thought about it. I can't possibly mention them all. This post would never end. Some of them made choices that might look traditional, but I assure you - they'd have a few well-chosen words for me or anyone else who might dare to suggest that makes them weak. And rightly so. #LiveYourDreamLikeAGirl
So I'm a pastor and a leader, in a world where not everyone thinks I should be, and where there aren't too many of "me" out there. I didn't set out to be an example, but sometimes it happens by accident. Last year I hired an assistant pastor, and also welcomed a pastoral intern. They are both powerful, strong, accomplished and talented - and they happen to be girls. That's not why they're at my church. They're at my church because they're fantastic.
And here's what I'd like to say to them, and every girl who questions whether or not there's a place for her in Christian ministry ...
#PreachLikeAGirl
