Dear Lord; Good morning Father! Well Lord, my day started out with a lovely surprise gifted to me by a couple of my fellow Christian Bloggers. As I’ve mentioned to You more than once, the wonderful people I’ve met (virtually) while writing this blog have been an amazing blessing to me, and never fail to inspire and encourage me in my walk with You. Two of the sites I read each day; Mothers on Mission (co-authored by Kelli and Heidi) and Beautiful in Him (written by Allison) have passed along to me the “Stylish Blogger Award”. Thank you so much ladies… I’m very flattered by this wonderful complement. 🙂
Along with this award comes a few requirements. First, I need to list seven things about myself that not everyone knows (although I realize You know me completely Father). Funny enough, while that seemed like a simple enough request, I found it no easy task. Here’s what I came up with :
1. I’ve married my wife Shannon three times; An informal ceremony with just a few family and friends, a formal affair five months later with a larger guest list and a reception, and this previous year on our 15th Anniversary I surprised her with a Vow Renewal Ceremony at the same church we were married in.
2. For the original wedding ceremony, I was married in jeans and western boots.
3. In 2009 I wrote and published a book for Shannon as an Anniversary gift called “Musings of a Devoted Husband” containing family photos and the daily romantic and devotional quotes I send to her phone and publish to MyCoffeeCupHasFeet.com each day.
4. I own and operate a computer networking and service company in Dover, Delaware called Diamond Computer Incorporated.
5. I have two wonderful children; Jonathan age 11 and Aidan age 8, both of whom I love dearly.
6. I’m a science fiction junkie, and love losing myself in episodes of shows like Dr. Who, Firefly, Babylon 5 and Fringe.
7. I’ve been a player of the online game World of Warcraft for over two years now. While I don’t get the time to play that I used to, I still enjoy it when I have a few quiet moments.
Wow… That took more than I thought it would. While it’s probably a good exercise, I always find writing about myself to be a terribly difficult thing to do.
The other responsibility of this award Father, is to bestow it on some other blogs that I enjoy. There are so many that I’ve gained insight and inspiration from that this could be a long list, but some of my favorites are :
Heavenly Father, I thank you for connecting me with these wonderful people in our Online Fellowship. I’m humbled to have met them through this journey, and pray that You continue to bestow Your Blessings on all those who strive to bring Your Message of Love to others. Amen.
Dear Lord; Good morning Father! On the heels of our discussion yesterday Lord, I’d like to follow up by talking with You about one of the most personal and effective ways You’ve brought Your Teachings and Guidance to me; through my children. I know we’ve covered things they’ve said and done more than once, but there were a couple glimmers of Your Light in them the last few days that I’d like to share. I still find it fascinating that even though You’ve put them in Shannon’s and my care to raise, I learn at least as much about You from them as they do from me.
To begin with, Friday night Jonathan was reading our discussions from the prior few days and informed me I had missed something. In the post “Better Than a Hallelujah”, I neglected to include his favorite song in the list. It’s from the Newsboys, and entitled “He Reigns” :
I have to agree with him, it’s a wonderful song. The lyrics that really get my attention are :
“And all the powers of darkness
Tremble at what they’ve just heard
‘Cause all the powers of darkness
Can’t drown out a single word”
Amen! If we fill the world with our praises of Your Glory, no dark force stands a chance. Nice choice Jonathan. 🙂
He and I also had a reasonably deep conversation about You that evening Lord, during which he made a statement out of the blue that just made my heart jump. He looked up at me and said : “Dad… I crave God.” Wow… I’ve never heard him use the word “crave” before, but from the lips of my 11 year old it was an amazingly powerful statement. Once again Father, you’ve used him to make me see Your Light. Thank You so much for this.
Not to leave Aidan out of the “influence loop” Lord, he gave me a good smile last night as well while he was reading his Action Bible and telling me all about it. He recanted the story described in Judges 6-8 in which Gideon’s army was reduced from 32,000 to a force of 300 men, and then by Your Power he prevailed against the Midianites much larger force. Aidan was completely captivated by this, and when we started discussing it he informed me that You were better than all the superheroes put together. Seeing him absorbing Your Word just brings joy to my heart Father. 🙂
I love my children to no end Lord, and seeing Your Light in them affects me more than almost anything else. Thank You so much for bringing them to my life, and staying by their sides each day. I pray that I can honor Your Gifts to us as they deserve, and that they never lose that craving for Your Love.
“Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him.” – Psalm 127:3
Dear Lord; This morning Father, I want to share a story with You; A very powerful story that brought both my wife and I to tears last night.
It was a long day yesterday Lord. Between the ice storm which led to school delays and then closings, and a number of other typical daily stresses, Shannon and I both came home a bit worn down. Grabbing the mail on the way in the house, Shannon spotted a hand-addressed envelope from the kids’ school. She opened it up, and inside was a letter written to us by one of the office staff regarding Jonathan. She quietly read the letter, laid it down and started to cry.
The letter was a personal note from one of the school administrative staff detailing a conversation she’d had with Jonathan the previous Friday. Apparently, Jonathan was assisting with shuttling some computer equipment between his classroom and the office, and helping with putting it away. At some point during this process, he started talking to one of the ladies in the office and asked her if she was familiar with a man called Jesus Christ. While surprised, she replied that yes, she was very familiar with Jesus. He then went on to tell her all about his disease (Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis), his surgeries, treatments and chemotherapy as an infant, and how he’d gotten through all those trials and was doing very well now. She told him how wonderful he looked and that she was glad everything was doing so well, at which time he then left to go back to class.
What Jonathan didn’t know however, was that her husband had been battling two forms of serious cancers for many years, and that it was only through the grace of Christ that he was still alive. Along with that, she indicated there were others within earshot going through similar trials who also took interest in his story. She wrote that Jonathan’s unprompted testimony was exactly what she and others needed at that moment, and she was sure he was meant to be there to deliver Your message. Her faith had been renewed, by the witness and encouragement of our little boy.
When I came home shortly thereafter and read the letter, there were tears in my eyes as well.
I talked to Jonathan later that evening about the conversation that prompted the letter (of course, not revealing what she’d written to me), and asked him : “What made you ask her if she knew Jesus?”. He answered that he really didn’t know, and honestly didn’t remember what led up to it; It just came to him at the time.
You spoke through him Father, and to him it seemed perfectly natural and reasonable at the time. May we all be that open to Your Voice Lord, and not be afraid to share it with others.
Thank You Father. This touched me in a way that only You can. Please bring Your Healing and Comfort to those going through these trials, and let us all be as effective and powerful a witness to Your Grace as the words of a child were that day. Amen.
Dear Lord; Wow Father… What a powerful morning You’ve presented me with. I’m still not 100% sure what to make of it, but it’s got me excited nonetheless.
Now, I’ve never been a big nighttime “dreamer”. In fact, I’m a chronic insomniac so when I do finally crash I very seldom remember what runs through my head the next morning. Last night however, was a completely different experience for me. Everything was so vivid, so real… When the alarm clock went off (and just FYI, I now realize that alarm clocks are one of Satan’s creations…LOL) I was truly shocked to find out that I had been asleep. However, although I woke a bit disoriented I had an amazing sense of peace and of hope in my heart that hadn’t been there when I went to bed. It was a wonderful feeling, but at the same time very confusing. A little later, I was trying to make sense of it all while showering and You whispered to my heart :
“Expect something wonderful”
I’ve never put much stock in my dreams Father, but I’ve absolutely learned to be open to Your Voice. This was such a powerful and unexpected experience for me, that I’m still having a hard time putting it into perspective. Either way, no matter what the “something wonderful” turns out to be, I can’t thank You enough for the joyous feeling You left me with this morning.
On a different note Lord, I just had to share another piece of happiness with You. Last night, Aidan and I finished reading the Book of Genesis in his new Action Bible. He was beaming from the accomplishment, and went to bed with a smile on his face. We also found and bought the DVD of the movie “The Ten Commandments” recently, and are planning to watch it this weekend so it’s a wonderful lead-in to reading the Book of Exodus. Jonathan’s been reading Genesis as well, and I expect he’ll have it done in the next day or so as well. Can You tell I’m proud of them Lord? 🙂
And we’re once again coming into a weekend Father. Shannon and I are getting out for “date night” tonight, with the balance of the weekend being spent getting the Christmas decorations put away and putting our house back to some semblance of normality. I’ll admit, I’m going to be sorry to see all the wonderful lights and embellishments get put away for another year, but it’s time.
Heavenly Father, I thank You so much for coming to me this morning. The more I feel Your Presence with me, the more I know peace in my heart and go through the day focused on what truly matters. Please guide me to better be Your Servant, and to shine Your Light to those around me so that they may know Your Love as I’ve come to. Amen.
Dear Lord; Good morning Father! To start off today, I’d like to thank You for the emotional “purging” You helped me with yesterday. Sometimes, the hidden feelings that quietly eat at our spirits are the hardest to control, and it feels absolutely wonderful to have laid that one down. Every negative I can shed brings me that much closer to You.
As You know, for Christmas I got both my boys new Children’s Bibles. These are lovely books Lord, which tell Your story and give Your Word to them in a way that they’re excited to read each night. Most evenings I’ve been reading with Aidan, but he’s also taken to reading some of it on his own and has just been devouring the stories. We’re almost completely through Genesis, and both my boys are amazed and filled with wonder at Your Power and Love for Your Children. I’ve been thrilled to see them so enthralled with learning about You, and I pray it continues to interest and excite them. Jonathan has taken to reading our daily conversations as well, and it warms my heart that he wants to know You so much more. I so want to raise these boys to be God-Loving, compassionate and righteous men.
“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.” – Proverbs 22:6
Heavenly Father, please help me continue to bring Your Loving Presence into my childrens’ lives. Fill them with the Holy Spirit, and make Your Heavenly Light shine through them so all may see Your Influence. I pray that You grant me the wisdom, the strength and the resolve to help them be the men I know they can be. Amen.
Hi, I’m Phil Malmstrom, a.k.a. Phather Phil. I’m self-employed, father of two wonderful young men, an ordained minister who delights in spreading Jesus’ Message of Hope and Love, a science-fiction junkie, an aspiring photographer and above all that one of God’s Children who rejoices in His Blessings each day.
Hi, I’m Phil Malmstrom, a.k.a. Phather Phil. I’m self-employed, father of two wonderful young men, an ordained minister who delights in spreading Jesus’ Message of Hope and Love, a science-fiction junkie, an aspiring photographer and above all that one of God’s Children who rejoices in His Blessings each day. 
