You know Father, as I’ve mentioned before I really LOVE Thankful Thursday posts. While I try to give thanks each day for the abundance of Blessings You grace me with, having a weekly post that leads me to recollect all the little things that bring a smile to my heart puts me in exactly the right perspective:
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV)
“With God, ‘thank you’ should always come before ‘please.’ The first thing that needs to come out of my mouth in prayer and worship needs to be praise for who God is and what He has done. Not just instructions for what I want or even need Him to do.”
So true.
Therefore Father, with that perspective firmly embedded in my heart, this week I’ve been thankful for:
196. A silly, giggly, tasty dinner with Shannon and the kids at a new Mexican Restaurant.
197. Getting some “one-on-one” time with Aidan while Jonathan was away at Kay’s Kamp.
203. Getting well over 50,000 miles on my truck tires before having to replace them.
204. Free lifetime map and software updates available for my GPS.
205. Finding new school uniform clothing for the boys at Goodwill dirt cheap.
206. Jonathan having another wonderful week away at Kay’s Kamp.
207. Having inexpensive generic versions available for the medications we take.
208. Tootsie Fruit Rolls.
209. My portable digital voice recorder that allows me to note things I’m thankful for at the time they come to me.
210. Waking up next to the lady I love each and every day.
Heavenly Father, once again I thank You for all the Blessings You grace our lives with each day; both those that shine brilliantly with Your Light, and those that Bless us quietly, without fanfare. I pray that You will continue to open my eyes wider to Your gifts, that I may appreciate them to the full.
First off Father, I want to raise Kim Miller up in prayer to You once again. Her powerful testimony in the video I linked to in yesterday’s post has very much been in my thoughts, and continues to inspire further introspection of my own Faith. Lord, please grant Kim Your peace, Your comfort and if it be Your Will, Your healing that she may continue to know Your abundant presence in her life.
Today Father, I’d like to discuss manners and courtesy, or more specifically the lack of them I’ve been seeing as of late.
During a quick trip at lunchtime over to the nearby WalMart, I was confronted a number of times with blatant examples of selfishness, disrespect and a general disinterest in the feelings of others. Simple little things like:
In a busy parking lot, taking up two full spaces to avoid being parked next to…
People not looking behind them when going through a door to see if someone is following close by before letting it swing closed…
Shoppers standing in the middle of a narrow aisle chatting while people and carts sit behind them waiting for them to move…
Parents allowing their young children to run around unsupervised and then getting upset when other people question them…
Leaving shopping carts rolling all over the parking lot when there are plenty of cart return stations nearby…
It’s very frustrating to witness such widespread disregard Father. And while I certainly ran into several smiling, courteous folks today as well, they were somehow less obvious than those whose focus was very much on themselves. Now, I’ve absolutely been guilty of allowing my mood to sidetrack my manners now and again Lord… I believe we all have. This begs the question; how would You have us act towards others so as to best reflect Your Love?
With forgiveness and compassion:
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” – Ephesians 4:32 (NIV)
With thought and empathy:
“Do to others as you would have them do to you.” – Luke 6:31 (NIV)
In the spirit of peace and unity:
“Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.” – Romans 14:19 (NIV)
With humility:
“For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” – Luke 14:11 (NIV)
And with Love:
“For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”” – Galatians 5:14 (NIV)
It’s so handy having Your Instruction Manual Father. 🙂
Heavenly Father, please help guide our words and actions to best exemplify the behavior that You desire of us. Make Your light visible through our lives, so that others may witness the peace and compassion of Your presence in us.
Well Father, it certainly was a busy weekend, but all-in-all a wonderful couple days’ time spent enjoying time with family and good friends. With Jonathan still at Kamp and Aidan spending the night with friends, Shannon and I got to go out Friday evening for a fun “date night” (I so love “dating” my wife Lord…). Saturday morning we picked up Aidan, and spent the remainder of the morning attending the closing ceremonies at Kay’s Kamp. We got some quiet time to rest Saturday afternoon, and then headed out to have dinner with a group of our friends. It rained much of the evening, but we had an absolutely wonderful time nonetheless. Sunday morning we braved the downpour to attend morning services at Ewell’s St. Paul United Methodist Church, and enjoyed jubilant music, a wonderful Message from Pastor Kris and the fellowship of our church family. We managed to catch up on a little housework while relaxing the remainder of the day, and concluded the weekend with a tasty dinner out together at a new Mexican restaurant in Smyrna. As I said before Lord, it was a hectic few days, but one that was truly filled with Your Blessings… Thank You!
Today’s Meditations Monday Scripture comes from Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians, Chapter 2. This morning while driving into the office, I heard an extremely inspiring story on 88.7 The Bridge which truly touched my heart. They played an interview with a young lady who is currently facing her own mortality due to an uncontrolled cancer that has now spread to her brain. Instead of dwelling in her suffering, she’s instead focusing on Your Blessings in her life, and lifted praises to You as she was baptized yesterday. It was a humbling message of Faith Father, and it led me to the verse choice I’m praying on this morning:
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” – Ephesians 2:8-10 (NIV)
So often when we get into situations that cause us pain, or discomfort, or even just inconvenience we develop “spiritual short-sightedness”, and mire ourselves down in our burdens rather than allowing those trials to strengthen our Faith, and to draw us closer to You. I pray that we can all learn from her courageous example Father, and seek You even in our darkest hour.
Heavenly Father, I lift my voice in praise for the Blessings You bring to our lives each day. I pray that Your comforting embrace continues to be felt by Kim and her family during this difficult season, and that they can draw strength from the knowledge that You’re always with them.
Whew… What a week it’s been Lord. Between a hectic schedule at my office, my visit to Kay’s Kamp and a myriad of other “life” events (getting new tires for the car, dealing with ill dogs, etc..), I’m quite ready for the weekend to begin. That being said Father, even with the fast-paced nature of the past few days I’ve had a very deep sense of Your Presence this week. That embodiment of peace in my Spirit has helped keep me focused, calm and joyful throughout, and for that I thank You.
To close out the week Lord, I’d like to share a song that’s been in my head as of late. It’s actually a song that’s been out for quite some time, but when I heard this rendition it was like hearing it for the first time. The song is called “Bless the Broken Road”, and this recording is by the group Selah :
Such a haunting performance, and a powerful message Father. 🙂
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your overwhelming presence in my life this past week. The more I open my heart to Your Voice, the more I realize that it’s been there all along. I pray that with Your guidance we’re all able to traverse life’s broken roads, and find our way into Your Loving Arms.
Well Father, this has certainly been a busy few days at phatherphil.org. The response I’ve had to our conversations this week has been quite honestly, overwhelming. I’m so thankful however, to have the Blessing of connecting with so many Brothers and Sisters in Christ this way. The opportunity I’ve been given to share Your Light and Love with others through this ministry is so precious to me, and I’m humbled and honored to do so.
On that same track Lord, on we go to this week’s Thankful Thursday list! While Your gifts in my life far exceed my meager ability to make note of them, this week I want to give specific thanks to You for:
181. Bacon, egg and cheese breakfast sandwiches.
182. Spiritual growth.
183. New clients.
184. The start of some cooler weather coming through.
185. Good quality, free backup software for my computers.
186. Seeing Shannon get excited about playing her viola with the praise team each week.
187. The fun afternoon we had last Sunday at the party/bbq held at my father’s house.
188. An act of assistance from our previous family physician.
189. Productive, positive meetings with potential clients.
190. The wonderful outpouring of responses I received on phatherphil.org this week.
191. Medication that calms my acidy stomach.
192. Being married to a lady that knows all my “quirks”, flaws and failings and loves me anyways. 🙂
193. The opportunity to help a friend in need.
194. Unsolicited compliments about my staff and company.
195. Shannon getting to spend some quality time with her mother.
Heavenly Father, You Bless us all in so many wonderful ways each day. For all those Divine Gifts You bestow on our lives, both those that brightly shine Your Light and those that grace us without fanfare, we give You our humble praises. You are indeed a wondrous Father, caring Shepherd and masterful Teacher and we thank You for Your Presence in our lives. 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. 
