Pastor Morrie Thompson
Teen Challenge South Australia website is http://www.tc.asn.au/
To a special friend,
I have created this site to give Morrie's family and friends the chance to look back and remember the good times that they have had over the years with Morrie. I hope that those who are reading this will contribute with their own stories and experiences spent with Morrie and help celebrate the life of a special person and friend. If you wish to add your contribution please press on the comments (next to the little envelope below). I pray that each one of you have the desire and passion to continue the dreams and visions Morrie had, may we all stand together and continue the good work Morrie has started. Morrie you will be Sadly Missed by many.
Morrie we met you as a stranger and took you as a friend and may we all one day meet up in heaven where friendship's never ends.
There is a tender touch of the Lord extended to each one of us at the time of loss. It is a touch that wipes our tears, soothes our grief, and comforts our sorrows. It is a touch that tenderly applies the Healing Oil of His Spirit and gently draws us under the shelter of His Wings.
Morrie's Funeral Service will be held on Thursday the 16th November, at 2.00pm at Northgate Life Centre Church Folland Avenue, Northgate South Australia.
Morrie is to be privately cremated, attended by his immediate family .
No flowers by personal request. A memorial donation to aid the future work of Teen Challenge can be made to Teen Challenge SA Inc P O Box 100 Marden, South Australia 5070 For your personal convenience donation envelopes will be available in the church foyer.
Ex-service persons are requested to wear their medals please. Morrie served with the Royal Australian Regiment Service Number 2785624 6RAR, 1RAR 7RAR Lance Corporal-Infantry. Australian Regiment Service Web site is http://www.7rar.asn.au/ROspt3.htm
This picture reminds me of Morrie and Julie as they had this picture on their fridge. Julie and family our prayers and thoughts are with you all during this difficult time.
posted by Please come and join us at www.paltalk.com under the Christian Section @ 11:48 PM
22 Comments:
Ruth said : There are so many things to say. Morrie was such a kind hearted man, he was so caring and had so much to give to others. Morrie was always know to support everyone around him, Morrie you were a person you could always count on. You often made me laugh as I would send you a text message and because you knew so many Ruths you would say now which Ruth is this message from, so you decided to call me Roof. There are so many good memories I have of you Morrie. One night you asked me to come down to the careline, you said if you havent had any tea I will buy you some chinese well I was down there in a flash. You decided you would have king prawns, when the lady placed the plate on the table you tried to blow the little fire out that was in the middle of the plate but i dont think you knew it was just for show. Well you tried to blow it out so hard but it just wouldnt go out the last blow was so strong your false teeth almost landed on my plate. I have never seen you laugh so much I could see the tears forming in your eyes from the laughter.
Another time you told me that Julie got you a (mans dog) lol and I thought you said it was dead. I wondered why on earth Julie would buy you a dead dog, I was picturing all kinds of things thinking maybe Julie's poodle had died so she got it stuffed. You decided to go home and pick up the dog and bring him back to the careline centre to show me, he wasnt dead at all he was such a live wire trying to get into everything. Then It hit me you had said a deaf dog not a dead dog.
My heart goes out to Julie, Morries family and friends. You will be sadly missed Big Fella, may you rest in the loving arms of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Morrie you were a kind and generous man. Forever in Gods hand's. My sincere sympathy to Julie and Family. Love Mignon A.
I worked with Morrie In Port Adelaide at Teen Challenge South Australia 15 years ago. Always a big hearted man, will be sadly missed. Respect to Family.
John Dowell Mana Renes Brisbane, Australia.
Grant and I were newlyweds when Morrie came to preach in our church, Hebron Christian Centre (now Portside Community Church) in late 1989. He was newly arrived from Mount Gambier and was putting out the call for workers for TC, which he planned to pioneer in the Port area. We ignored the standard advice at the time to “take the first year of your marriage off” and got involved.
That was the beginning of the most significant mentoring relationship we’ve ever had. Morrie knew people. He had the kind of wisdom that came not from books, but from the “school of hard knocks”; the kind of knowledge you only get from having been in the pits yourself. His compassion and longsuffering with people came the same way. In those early days he’d watch us and the other staff make mistakes, get conned, even beaten up every now and again. Morrie knew the boundaries concept long before anyone wrote bestselling books about it.
Morrie had a wonderful capacity for acknowledging the gifting in people, whether or not any one else recognised them as talented, and putting them to use. He made everyone feel important. He consistently modelled love for the poor and marginalised, he and Julie opening their home to countless individuals, and he expected everyone else who came on board to do the same. He used to say, “We want the ones no-one else wants, because that’s who Jesus wants”. That was the way he lived his life and it challenged us to the core.
We loved going away on weekend ministry trips with Morrie. We’d travel south into country areas, do some music, and Morrie would preach. I remember once, in the coaster bus on the way to a church service, Morrie turned and asked me, “What do you reckon I should preach on this morning?” and then laughed his big hearty laugh. But of course Morrie knew darn well what he was going to preach. It was already in him. It was usually the same message. “The Spirit of the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor”. Morrie wasn’t well schooled, but I remember many of his sermons back them and they were all rippers. They’d always leave us deeply challenged.
One of his favourite illustrations back then was to ask a congregation, “Put up your hand if you have financial need!” Then he’d say to everyone else, “Extend your hands towards these people……Now, bring your hand down, and put it in your pocket….”. Everyone got the point. He made everyone understand that their local churches couldn’t palm off responsibility for the suffering of others onto para church groups or the government. Christ’s body had the resources. We just had to be ready to share them around.
In those early days the team were all involved in detox rosters (in the back room at our place), running the Friday night coffee shop in the Port and in city street teams. They were exciting and scary events at times. But it was a privilege to be trained and encouraged by Morrie and he always conveyed a confidence in God that reminded you that you were being protected and that you would have what you needed in any given situation. It helped that he was a really big guy – there were one or two threatening situations when Morrie showed up at just the right time. I remembering thinking, “gee, I’m glad he’s on our side!”.
I can recall him telling us that after his conversion and dramatic recovery from alcoholism, he became something of a local expert about drug and alcohol issues in the South East. He said, “All I knew about alcoholism was how to get drunk”. Yet in the future he would have an audience with state politicians and other authorities, because what he was doing was working.
Our involvement with TC S.A. Inc was only for two years, but it was fun, fast, furious and intense. There was no doubt in our minds then, or now, that this was the Gospel, authentically being lived out. Morrie had set the benchmark for us. We have always looked back on those days as some of our best memories, a pivotal time when the Lord captured our hearts with His bias for the hurting and broken. And God used Morrie as the vehicle. Even though a long time has past since we moved from Adelaide and had contact, his loss is felt deeply. May Morrie’s legacy continue through the work of Teen Challenge and all whose lives were touched by him. We will miss you mate.
Julie, Luke, James, Sarah and other members of Morrie’s family – our love and prayers go out to you.
Grant and Suzy Tieman
Mullumbimby, NSW
Karen Kronbergs
Well what can I see about a great Pastor and friend, Mozza. Oh God.. Oh God you know how much I miss this big man with the big heart. The Careline is what you told me to keep doing so I will try my friend, but without you knocking on the door and making a mess of my office, it just aint the same. Fly with the angels, higher than the eagles, I miss to so much and thankyou for the words of LIFE you continually spoke into my life. Especially the first ones that I still remember. "Karen your attitude sux" and "Rebellion is witchcraft"... only you could use these 'cut to the chase' words and impact a broken person and help me through Jesus, to become beauty for ashes.. Love ya Mozzy.. Kazza
Drew said Yes Morrie was a great man and friend to many he has helped many people and I am one of them he helped me so much if he didnt I wouldnt be here now thanks Morrie.
I remember you morrie, with your smiling & laughing, & u helped me through the hard times, especially when i took off from teen challenge u & your family encouraged me 2 come back
You & your fqmily showed me love and encouraged me to do the right thing a& stick it out 2 the end. I would still be in a mess if in God's strengrth your daughter had not shown me what 2 do with my life the way she understood it, u r always close 2 my heart morrie, miss u. God's blessings on u & your family and many thanks
Jodie Thomas (Melbourne)
Ohhhh Mozza. What can I say about a man who words cannot describe!? I love that man so much. Morrie has made a huge impact on my life, probably bigger than I'll ever know. Morrie took me so many different places and we met so many different people. Those that I'll remember most are the beautiful black faces of the kids 'out bush' Morrie's influence on my life has given me a heart for the lost and broken. He was the biggest example to me of what the true sense of being a Christian is all about. Loving your neighbour more than yourself. Feeding, clothing & tending to who world would consider 'the least' and who God sees as the one's He came to save. And beleiving in the Grace of God, through Jesus Christ above all else. I am still a baby in Jesus but working with, watching and listening to Morrie and the like minded people he was surrounded by, and who now surround me, has enlarged my vision and stretched my tent pegs to believe for things, and work towards things I would have once thought impossible. Thank you Jesus for crossing my path with Morries I will always give You praise for that blessing. Love Katie Jane. Ps God please give Moz a big whack on the back for me. You know I owe him!! :)
When Morrie rang me or answered my calls he always called me KKKKKylie. When he came to our church at Murray Bridge it was his 60th birthday, he jokingly asked for a party and a cake. We had a lovely fellowship lunch that day with a teriffic surprise cake for him.
Ruth I love your story about the false teeth! :-)
As everyone else has said, it's hard to know what to say.
If I can do just a part of the things you did, I'll be happy. You set a great example of what a follower of Jesus is. One of Morrie's sayings was, "If you always do what you've always done then you'll always get what you've always got." He always encouraged me to keep going (with family & Teen Challenge) when I felt like giving up.
I still miss you, mate....
Kylie
I met Morrie and had the pleasure of riding to church with him.
He will be missed, and I am sure his family kiss him greatly.
I met morrie years ago when he was trying to help those in need at millicent, I went there with my ex partner. I never understood anything back then, yeah school of hard knocks sure helps to understand.I seen you when you were in mount gambier preaching in church when you were down and Im sure you recognised me I was going to talk but didnt and felt something in my heart when I read that you had passed. I never new your testimony before. It is amazing. You truely are a amazing man. I was looking up teen challenge as I have a son that after 10 years is still on the same destuctive path. I felt like giving up on him and those that are in the same situation. I too care a lot about people and after reading these stories and I no not to quit and give up. Love to your family and loved ones they must be awfully proud of you.
Where do i start to thank and acknowledge a man who profoundly impacted my life? Morrie, you were one of the biggest mentors of my life! My friend, pastor and confidante.You were so loving and non-judgemental. A man who 'walked the talk',a role model on the right way to live.You taught me how to be a better person and overcome the troubles life can sometimes bring.I watched you in different circles displaying strength and love, kindness and encouragement, discernment and wisdom. I developed a huge respect and love for you.There's so much i wanted to tell you and didn't, but i know you knew how i felt. Thankyou for all that you gave, not just to me but thousands of others.Your truly one of a kind!
I am reminded of you each time i hear this poem by Emily Dickonson.
If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I will not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,
Or help one lonely person
Into happiness again
I shall not live in vain.
Bye Mozza
To hear of a man who dedicated his life to helping those who are in pain, suffering, addicted or just messed up, died of such a terrible disease is just the saddest, I met Morrie in 1991, when i started the teen challenge rehab program, it was still morries baby. Through Morries hard work, total dedication and fantastic pick of workers and volunteers I graduated from Teen Challenge SA I was the first to complete it and I would never be where I am today married 3 kids another on the way if it wasnt for morrie doing what he knew best, I have sooooooo many laughable moments but I also have so many bonding memories, I hope he knew I did forgive him for the prison visit, (those who were around those days know what im talking about). You are sadly missed Morrie thank you for your hard work dedication and sacrifice to do god's work and help to make others better no matter what the cost was to you and your family!! To Julie, boys and sarah, I love you guys and julie behind every man is a great woman!! That is you sweetie, you were his rock and strength, I'm so sorry for your loss and will catch up with you when im next in Adelaide, (have to brush up on sign language but ill get through it) Once again what a loss, I hope the legend of Morrie continues! Justine Brisbane
morrie wa a truly great man of god he loved and cared for people of all walks of life. he was instrumental in my life on so many ocassions i will greatly miss you brother
yes as all the above threads have mentioned, morrie was someone who would get beside you and walk with you, and invite you into his home.
i stayed with his family a few months, and painted out his flat out the back, and some of the church then in hindley street, and have never forgotten the liason, im looking forward to returning soon to tc, as i should never have left it in the first place, but alas we do what we do, carol and grant were great people too, cheers
I often think of Morrie and can believe it has already been 8 years since he received his boarding pass to Heaven. I bet he has been having a wonderful time with friends that had crossed over before him.
I can't believe you are gone morrie you were a really good listener you were caring I first met morrie at the chapel on hindley St when I was 15. You became like a dad to me!! I wish I came back to adelaide to see you one more time and so you could see the women I became . You & your family let me stay in your granny flat and took care of me like your own. I miss you morrie!!
Yours truly,
Krista
Its been 10 years and i still miss you. you were a great man i love you
i still love and miss you Morrie and i think about you often never will forget you
A great man... you will never be forgotten Morrie,
Pastor Morrie my father in law it’s been nearly 17 hrs since you passed. I stil miss you my brother. Have a good week and live it for Jesus
Wow 17 years already, time goes so fast.
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