I Can See Clearly Now…

Dear Lord; Happy Friday Father!

This morning Lord, I had another one of those inspired geek moments that You grant me from time to time.  I was working on a laptop PC that was in for service, with the primary customer complaint being that it was running very slowly.  External malware and virus scans had come back clean, so I booted into the operating system to evaluate the situation.

It was clogged to the hilt with “stuff” starting up automatically every time it booted.

Now, this is something we see pretty regularly.  Between the bundled software that comes loaded on new machines, “add-on” downloads that come along for the ride with installs over the Internet, and all the little “extras” that get installed automatically with new components like printers and scanners, unless you know what’s safe to remove or deselect, it builds up quickly.  The result over time is a computer that takes a long time to boot up, and acts slow and sluggish when performing tasks.

As I started to strip away the layers of unnecessary bloat from the machine, my mind drifted back to yesterday, and the “fog” my mind had been in for most of the day…

I was slow…

I was sluggish…

I had problems focusing on tasks…

Your Voice wasn’t as clear as it usually is.

Hmmm… A parallel maybe?  🙂

Like the laptop in my care, my mind yesterday was filled with unnecessary “clutter”.  Ponderings and concerns about everything from money, to groceries, to laundry preoccupied my thoughts, making focusing on more important matters (like talking with You) much more difficult.

Therefore Father, going into this weekend my prayer is a simple one:

Heavenly Father, please grant us Clarity;

Clarity of focus to see past our earthly concerns…

Clarity of mind to listen in the Stillness for Your Voice…

Clarity of purpose to make choices that best Glorify You…

Clarity of Spirit to draw us closer to Your Presence.

Amen.

~Phather Phil

The Prayers of a Leader

Dear Lord; Happy Tuesday Father!

Well Lord, first off I want to say a quick thank You for a break in the steamy weather we’ve been having.  It’s still good and warm to be sure (90 degrees or so), but the humidity has dropped substantially and the over-100 degree temperatures have abated for the moment.  Based on the forecast things will be getting warmer again soon, but nonetheless the intermission is very much appreciated!

Today Father, I was reading in the Old Testament in 1 Kings, Chapter 3 and came across something that touched my spirit and got me thinking.  It was early on in king Solomon’s reign and while visiting Gibeon to offer sacrifices to You, You came to him in a dream with an amazingly magnanimous offer…

At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” – 1 Kings 3:5 (NIV)

Wow… Now that’s a proposition!  The Author of all Creation asking “what can I give to you?”.  For most people, this question would instantly flood their minds with thoughts of wealth, power, longevity or other earthly gifts.  Solomon however, had a slightly different request of You…

“Now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. 

Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. 

So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?” – 1 Kings 3:7-9 (NIV)

Such a humble, thoughtful answer he gave to You Father!  It makes me wonder what kind of world we’d be living in if all of our leaders petitioned You in such a way?  Or for that matter, what kind of world would it be if we ALL prayed for the strength, wisdom and temperament to serve others selflessly in Your Name…

It’s a powerful and inspiring thought Father, and one I’ll be praying on.

Amen.

~Phather Phil

Closing the Week in Prayer

Dear Lord; Happy Friday Father!

To conclude this week’s postings Lord, I’d like to say a couple of prayers if I may.

First off Father, it’s hot here today… in fact, dangerously so.  With a temperature of around 100 degrees and high humidity, the heat index shows us at around 117 degrees outside.  For those of us who are Blessed with good health it’s oppressive enough, but for those who are more vulnerable to the effects of these conditions (young children, the elderly, asthmatics, etc.) this weather can pose serious health risks.  Please wrap all those affected by these climatic conditions in Your Protective Embrace.  Let them feel the cooling breeze of Your Holy Spirit, and give them the resources needed to combat the effects of this weather.

Secondly Lord, several of my “Bloggy” friends are attending the “She Speaks” Conference this weekend.  I pray that Your Presence is felt in abundance at this gathering, and that their hearts and minds are opened wide to gain what this experience has to offer.  Please protect and watch over their families while they’re away, and bring them home safely when it’s completed.

And finally Father, I’d like to thank You for leading me to find the Glo Bible website today.  I’m always on the lookout for new sources of information to assist me in my Walk with you, and the Glo Bible is an amazing tool.  After downloading the free version and working with it for part of the morning, I ended up purchasing the Premium content as well.  I’m looking forward to spending time exploring it this weekend, and placing it in Jonathan’s hands as well.  With all the rich multimedia and interactive tools Glo contains, I think it could open a whole new line of thought and prayer for him as he delves deeper into Your Word.

Heavenly Father, I thank You for yet another Blessing-filled week.  I pray that Your Divine Peace and Comfort is felt by all those in need, and for Your continued Guidance in making choices and decisions that best glorify Your Will for us.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

Unplugging from the World

Dear Lord; Happy Tuesday Father!

I have a confession to make Father:

I’m a chronic multitasker.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve always been one of those people who delights in doing several things at the same time.  My brain tends to work on overdrive most of the time, processing stimuli from a number of different directions all at once and reacting accordingly.  Combine that with the amazing array of smartphones, tablets, personal organizers and computers that pervade my world, and I spend quite a bit of my day on overload.  And while it’s been a useful condition over the years for dealing with a rapidly moving business environment, I’ve come to realize that in many cases my predilection for multitasking is not only problematic, but can be unhealthy as well…

I have significant problems with insomnia.

I get frustrated easily when things around me don’t “keep up”.

I suffer from high blood pressure and hypertension.

My patience with others can become very limited.

I find that when I don’t accomplish as much as I expected to, it leads to feelings of self-doubt.

Thankfully Father, with Your help I’ve been making some headway in controlling this side of my persona.  By deliberately choosing to focus my attention on one project at a time, and listening to Your Voice for guidance all the while, I find I actually achieve more and at the same time gain the strength and peace of Your Presence as well.  I’ve also been doing some things to “disconnect” myself from the high-speed world around me such as…

Limiting my smartphone usage to emergencies and family needs only outside of working hours (this has been a difficult change for me).

Not spending time logged into Facebook, Twitter or social networking sites when I’m home in the evenings.

Going for long walks in the woods, along the shore, or other places where I can dwell in Your Abundance.

Spending quiet time in prayer, studying Scripture or reading other Christian-focused books.

Taking time out of the workday for a Stillness Sabbatical now and again.

Writing out these conversations we have each day.

While I realize that we live in a world that emphasizes constant connectivity and productivity Lord, I’m finding that as my Walk with You progresses my time spent in simpler pursuits is far more satisfying.  I’m not planning on finding a cave and becoming a hermit mind You, but I am enjoying the balance and clarity that comes from “unplugging” from the world, and “plugging” into You.  🙂

Amen.

~Phather Phil

If You Prick Me…

Dear Lord; Happy Wednesday Father!

Today Father, my prayers are focused on my son Jonathan and my wife Shannon as they spend time at the A.I. Dupont Hospital for Children.  The appointment today wasn’t expected to be a big deal; simply an MRI with and without contrast to check and make sure that Jonathan’s LCH was still behaving itself.  As the scans were going to take a while and required Jonathan be perfectly still, the plan was to sedate him so that he could sleep through the process.  This seemed like a perfectly reasonable idea and after he’d been given some Versed to relax him a bit beforehand they got him ready for the procedure…

And then he saw the IV needle.  He was no longer relaxed.

Jonathan has a very serious fear of needles Father, and from what Shannon described he changed instantly from my gentle, loveable little boy into a raving, angry, terrified child.  In the end, they had to give him general anesthesia (gas) to get him under for the scans, requiring a longer stay at the hospital and leaving Shannon emotionally exhausted in the process.

Following the phone conversation with Shannon bringing me up to speed on the day’s events, I started thinking about the fear Jonathan must have been feeling at that moment.  His dread of needles has deep-seated roots, far beyond what he remembers.  As an infant, Jonathan’s disease and subsequent treatments required he be all too familiar with the prick of a needle.  And even though he’s not had to endure a large number of sticks since that time, there’s an underlying anxiety that grips him whenever he requires one.

So, how to address this fear with him Lord?  Well, if we examine Your Word there’s quite a bit of wisdom to draw on.  As I know Jonathan reads this Father, I’d like to use the rest of our time today to pass some of those thoughts along to him here if I may…

Dearest Jonathan,

“For I am the Lord your God
who takes hold of your right hand
and says to you, Do not fear;
I will help you.” – Isaiah 41:13 (NIV)

Whatever pain, fear or trials we face in this life, we need not be afraid because God never leaves our side.  He’s stayed close to you all of your life, and seen you through amazing hardships.  When fear grips your heart and threatens to take control, I want you to close your eyes and feel God’s Hand firmly grasping yours.

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” – Joshua 1:9 (NIV)

The Lord desires that we show our character and faith in him through acts of trust.  Courage isn’t the absence of fear Jonathan, it’s having fear and yet doing what you know is right with the knowledge that God will give you the strength to get you through when you lay those burdens at His feet.

“Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.

He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.” – Isaiah 40:28-31 (NIV)

We weren’t created to rely completely on our own strength Jonathan.  We get tired, and stressed, and scared.  Thankfully, we have our Heavenly Father to hold us up and provide us that “Holy Nudge” to get us through when we call on Him.  I see so much of God’s Light in you, and when you seek His help I know that you’ll find it in abundance.

“I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” – Philippians 4:13 (NIV)

I love you kiddo.

Amen.

~Dad (Phather Phil)