In His Skillful Hands

Dear Lord; Good afternoon Father.

Thank You Lord, for starting my day off so pleasantly this morning.  I always like waking to the sound of Your Voice in my head, especially when the message is “Today is a Good Day”.  Well, it’s just after lunchtime here now and so far it truly has been as you prepared me; A good day.  🙂

In the beginning of the year Father, You gave me a word to focus my energies and prayers on.  It wasn’t a word I would have chosen sans Your intervention, but You were quite insistent at the time as I remember so I adopted it as my own.  The word was Accept.

Today Lord, I thought I’d discuss a couple of the ways “our” word choice has impacted me thus far, and presented itself in my life.

The beginning of “The Serenity Prayer” comes immediately to mind Father :

“God, grant me the serenity to Accept the things I cannot change…” – Reinhold Niebuhr

As You know, this has always been a rough one for me Lord.  Many of my most significant upsets have come from situations which I have little or no control over.  With Your help, I’ve been working on this flaw in my character and I can honestly say that we’ve made some progress.  I still have more than a few stresses in my life right now, but I’ve learned to better Accept those things which I can’t fix and focus my efforts on the ones I can make positive change in.

Along those same lines Father, I’m learning to Accept assistance more readily from others as well.  I’ve always prided myself (I know… another nasty word, but we’re making progress on that flaw too.) on being reasonably independent, but through my journey to You I’ve realized that You put us all here together for a reason.  When I can help someone, I should but I also need to be open to Accepting help from others as well.  It’s still a struggle sometimes for me to show that vulnerability, but I’m happy to say that barrier is lower than it used to be.

Needless to say, I now understand why You chose this word for me.  I obviously have some significant room for growth and Acceptance appears to be the key to much of that.

Heavenly Father, thank You for continuing to Guide me in Your Grace.  I am but clay in Your Skillful Hands, eager to be molded into a form which can best serve Your Will.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

There is a Time for Everything

Dear Lord; Good morning Father.

Today Lord, I was having difficulty deciding how to “frame” our conversation.  This morning brought along with the dawn a seemingly continuous stream of headaches, problems and complications which made it very difficult for me to focus on Your Voice through the “noise”.  I started writing several times, but always ended up clearing it from my screen because it just felt wrong.  Instead of forcing the issue, I decided to leave myself open to You as best I could, and work through the day’s labors until we could connect up properly.

Well Father… I’m here now.

It’s terribly disconcerting to me when I get to the point where I can’t focus enough to have our morning discussion.  I’m dependent on You Lord, and when earthly influences overwhelm me to the point of not being able to concentrate on You, it’s upsetting to say the least.  I felt lost, and embattled.  For my human frailties Lord, I apologize and thank You for being ever faithful to me during my moments of weakness.

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” – Isaiah 41:10 (NIV)

Thank You for Your Comfort and Strength Father, and Your Unwavering Dedication to Your Children.  We are truly Blessed.

Now Lord, if I may, I’d like to shift the subject.

As I mentioned yesterday, over the weekend I got a chance to head out with Jonathan and Aidan to Blackbird State Forest for a photowalk in the woods.  It wasn’t overly cold per-se, but the wind was in upwards of 40mph, providing a stark reminder that while the temperature was up a bit we were still in the grips of winter.  I hadn’t been there during this time of year before, and it was a truly different place with the foliage stripped from the trees and bushes.  The veil of green we were accustomed to seeing was cast aside, and had been replaced by a vast sea of towering gray trunks reaching into the sky.

Life seemed to have packed up and left for warmer climates.

And yet, as we walked through the silent, barren trails we were greeted with some signs of rebirth.  Through the carpet of fallen leaves and pine needles poked streaks of color; tufts of early grasses and fungi protected by and feeding on the remains of the previous year’s abundance.  Like our spirits journeying to Your Light Lord, the forest was quietly feeding and nourishing the life it held hidden beneath the surface.

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:  a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.” – Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NIV)

Heavenly Father, that walk opened my heart to the transitions You’re making in my life.  I pray that You continue to feed my hunger for Your Presence, and nourish my imperfect and yearning spirit so that my human failings are no further impediment to Your Plan for me.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

Listening Through the Anger

Dear Lord; Happy Monday Father!

First off Lord, I want to thank You for a lovely weekend surrounded by family and friends.  I was even able to get out with the kids for a photowalk in the forest, and enjoyed it very much.  All in all, it was a pleasant couple of days and I am truly thankful for You Blessing me with that respite.

Today Father, I’d like to discuss something I’ve seen more and more evidence of lately; People seem to be increasingly frustrated, angry and confrontational.  Now, I realize this is a gross generalization however it feels like the overall “threshold” of people’s tolerance and temperament is much lower than it has been in recent past.  Little everyday issues that could easily be talked through or handled with minimal effort are launching people into flashes of ire that are way out of proportion to the immediate cause.  We’re deluged with examples of it in the news, I’ve seen it when dealing with clients and vendors at my office, and even when observing the actions of other shoppers while out grocery shopping.  It’s getting tense down here Lord.

“Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil.” – Psalm 37:8 (NIV)

I’ll admit that with all the increased stress I’ve been under professionally lately Father, I’ve been guilty of having a “shorter fuse” upon occasion, but You’re always very quick to remind me that’s not Your Way and I get back on track.  This being the case, it leads me to a significant concern…

Are there that many people that aren’t listening to You?

I’m quite afraid I already know the answer to that question, but I guess I hadn’t realized the scope of the issue.  I do know that I’ve come to depend on Your Voice and Presence in my life Father, almost like I need air to breathe.  You encourage me, sustain me and guide me throughout my day and I am forever thankful for Your Blessings.  Do I sometimes get upset anyways?  Absolutely!  I’m imperfect and flawed and I realize that.  Thankfully, when my humanly failings rear their ugly heads I have You to forgive me, bolster me and guide me back to Your Path.

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” – Ephesians 4:31-32 (NIV)

Heavenly Father, today I pray for all those who are lost and without the clarity to hear Your Comforting Voice.  Please calm their restless spirits, and clear away the self-imposed barriers in place which prevent them from Your Wondrous Counsel.  And Lord, please assist me in acting as an emissary of Your Word and in bringing Your Message to those in need.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

Time to Clean House

Dear Lord; Good afternoon Father.

Today Lord, I spent much of my morning “cleaning house” at my shop.  We actually moved into these new offices over a year ago, but it was a rushed move and in the haste to meet contractual deadlines we ended up doing a poor job of sorting and packing equipment, tools, paperwork and such.  The result of which was that anything that we didn’t need right that moment was tossed into boxes somewhat randomly, and then stuck on shelves in the new space.  Well, today the lack of being able to find a part that I knew I had got the better of me, and I started tearing through boxes; sorting, tossing things out and beginning to put some order to the chaos.  It was truly amazing what we had shoved aside, and in the end I even found the item I was looking for.  There’s still a lot more to go through, but every journey has to start somewhere.

Hmmm… Where have I heard that before?

At some point during my morning of discovery, I realized that maybe I needed to go through a similar process in my spiritual life.  There are lots of “boxes of stuff” I’ve built up inside of me over the years that I’ve hurriedly shoved aside while running from one situation to the next.  I’ve opened some of them and put them in their places, but there are many others that still lie on my emotional shelves gathering dust.  I think we all hold on to some “baggage” like that as we go through life; containers filled with past guilt, remorse, longing and sadness that we file away with the intention to deal with them at a later date.

Well Lord, I’m tired of tripping over them.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” – 2 Corinthians 5:17

I’ve given myself completely to You Father, so these storehouses of pent-up burdens need to go… We need the room for the two of us to build a new “living space” together.

Heavenly Father, I place the dusty baggage of my soul in Your Loving Hands.  I’ve learned what I can from it, and now need to focus on Your New Life in me.  I pray that the new, cleaner house we build together will be deemed ready to reside in Your Kingdom.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

A Beautiful Prayer

Dear Lord; Good morning Father.

Today Lord, while “Stumbling” through Internet sites focused on Christianity I came across a prayer in the form of a poem that really caught my attention, made me think and warmed my heart.  Doing some quick research, I found that it was written by a lady named Joanne Gobure and the original title of the piece was “A Beautiful Prayer” :

I asked God to take away my pain.
God said, No.
It is not for me to take away,
but for you to give it  up.

I asked God to grant me patience.
God said, No.
Patience is a by-product of tribulations;
it isn’t granted, it is learned.

I asked God to give me happiness.
God said, No.
I give you blessings.
Happiness is up to you.

I asked God to spare me pain.
God said, No.
Suffering draws you apart from
worldly cares and brings you closer to me.

I asked God to make my spirit grow.
God said, No.
You must grow on your own,
but I will prune you to make you fruitful.

I asked for all things that I might enjoy life.
God said, No.
I will give you life,
so that you may enjoy all things.

I asked God to help me LOVE others,
as much  as he loves me.
God Said…

“Ahhhh, finally you have the idea.”

May God Bless You,
“To the world you might be one person,
But to one person you just might be the world.”

…Lots to think about and pray on here Father.  Thank You for putting this in my path today.

Amen.

~Phather Phil