Go Rest in the Word

Dear Lord; Happy Tuesday Father!

It’s funny Father, but I never thought of Your Word as blood pressure medication before today.

Following a significant power outage/surge event in Dover late yesterday afternoon, we were greeted at the office this morning by a flurry of “help me” calls from a number of our local customers.  Now, in and of itself, it wasn’t an overwhelming volume of crises but I noticed as the morning wore on that I was becoming increasingly irritable and was feeling my heart pounding in my chest… not a good sign.  I tried some slow breathing exercises, and to focus on one task at a time but couldn’t seem to calm down and get a grip on the day.  As my chest tightened further and my head began to throb, You placed a distinct and firm command on my heart:

Go rest in the Word.

I’ll be honest Lord, my first thought was not immediate obedience.  After all, it was the middle of a workday and I had things that I needed to get accomplished.  Sensing Your insistence however, I told my admin that I’d be “off the grid” for a while, closed the door to my office and fired up YouVersion on my Nook Color…

“Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” – Psalm 46:10 (NIV)

In that stillness, in Your Presence, I found my calm Father.  The pounding in my head abated, my chest relaxed and I felt Your Peace come to me.

Contemplating the events of the morning, I realized that this very much falls into line with the message about “Spiritual Decompression” You gave me last week.  Finding refuge and inspiration in Scripture is one way I can become closer to You, and in doing so gain the balance that my spirit needs to navigate the Journey You’ve laid out for me.

I see the path Lord, and I thank You for being so faithful in guiding me along it’s twists and turns.

Amen.

~Phather Phil

On Track

Dear Lord; Happy Monday Father!

Well Father, it certainly was an eventful weekend once again in the Malmstrom home.  It seemed we were all running constantly, but in the end it was a wonderful time spent with those I love, and I have much to be thankful for.

Friday night, we began the evening by attending Jonathan’s music presentation at school.  He’s been learning to play the clarinet this year, and he did a fantastic job playing for the parents (no goose noises… yay!).  He may look like my little “clone” Father, but thank You so much for slipping his mother’s music DNA in there somewhere.  🙂  Following the short concert, we took the boys over to their Godparents’ house for an overnight visit and Shannon and I headed out to an 80’s party being thrown by some good friends of ours.  We had a grand time hanging out around a huge campfire, listening to 1980’s “hair band” music, having some food and a few drinks and laughing into the morning hours.  It was a lovely way to end a hectic week Lord, and I thank You for that stress relief.

After sleeping in a bit the next morning, we went and picked up the kids (who had a great night as well), and headed out to Port Mahon for some photo opportunities, and to scour the shoreline for bits of sea glass.  We were able to time it this trip so that we got there as the tide was beginning to go out, leaving fresh bounty upon the sands.  As you remake us each day Father, so do the tides remake the landscape revealing new wonders for us to find… Such a treasure hunt!

On the way back home, we stopped to handle the grocery shopping for the week, and then the boys and I crashed on the CuddleBags for the new Doctor Who episodes.  All in all, it was a wonderful day with the family Lord, and I thank You for that time together.

Sunday morning, Jonathan and I got up early and headed out to attend the Contemporary Worship Service at Ewell’s St. Paul’s UMC in nearby Clayton.  Through a friend of mine who’s heavily involved in the church there, I’d met with Pastor Kris for lunch a little over a week ago, and was invited to visit one of the services to see if Ewell’s might be a good fit for us.  The service was wonderful, the congregation was warm and friendly, and the message was delivered beautifully.

We’re planning to attend next Sunday as well.  🙂

As you know Father, we’ve been on the hunt for a spiritual home for some time now, and I think we may have found it there.  Thank You so much for leading us to this place, and to these people.

This service also marked something that brought tears to my eyes Lord… Jonathan’s first taking of Holy Communion.  It was a powerful moment, and as I knelt at the altar following the Sacrament I felt Your Presence wash over me, knowing somehow, that You were pleased.

Following the service, we headed home and after a hearty breakfast the boys and I headed out for a hike down some new trails in Blackbird State Forest.  We’d looked at some satellite maps and realized that the forest was cut through by a local railway line, so we decided our goal that day was to find those tracks.  After a mile or so, the forest opened out onto the railway we sought, and I was able to get this shot of my fellow adventurers:

I love this shot Lord, cheesy smiles and all.

The rest of the day was spent in catching up on housework that had piled up since the BBQ the previous weekend; laundry, dishes, cleaning, etc.  It was a wonderfully satisfying and productive Sunday Father, and one I won’t soon forget.

Did I remember to say thank You?  🙂

Heavenly Father, I thank You for all the Blessings You continue to bestow on us all.  In Your grace we are redeemed and made whole, and I praise You for that most wondrous of gifts we can never hope to repay.  Please guide us to decisions and actions that best glorify Your Will, and help us grow in Your Kingdom each day.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

The Final Project

Dear Lord; Happy Friday Father!

To close our week’s conversations Lord, I thought I’d share a smile with You.

The school that Jonathan attends uses a project-based approach to learning, which includes a number of long-term research projects over the course of the year.  For the last project this year, they allowed the students to pick their own topic of interest to research, and along with a paper on the subject they had to present a visual to the class as well.  Jonathan chose the Newsboys as his topic, and for a visual he and I whipped up a multimedia presentation for him to show on the SmartBoard.  As this isn’t a Christian school, I was pleasantly surprised that they didn’t argue with the content choice, and will be very interested to hear how it’s received by his classmates.

Either way, I thought I’d share the results of his efforts with You today:

I love seeing him excited about all aspects of worshiping You Father, and this just brought a smile to my heart.  🙂

Father God, I lift my heart in praise for Your Presence in my life each day.  You Bless us in so many ways Lord, and I pray that I’m effective in sharing that Hope and Peace with all those around me.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

Turn Weakness Into Strength

Dear Lord; Happy Tuesday Father!

First off Father, I want to thank You for a wonderful three-day weekend.  As we discussed in my post on Friday, this Memorial Day weekend was especially emotional and special for us as we celebrated the fact that it’s been 10 years this month since Jonathan’s last chemotherapy treatment.  To mark this milestone, we held a fairly large BBQ at the house (50+ people) on Sunday afternoon, attended by many of those whom have been involved with, or touched by Jonathan’s journey.  It was a joyous event, and Your Presence was felt in abundance.

Yet while we celebrated the life You’ve continued to Grace us with Father, my thoughts and prayers were very much splintered.  Last week I was made aware of several other families fighting that dark battle that we had come through those 10 years back.  While my heart was full with the amazing Blessing of Jonathan’s remission, at the same time it ached, confronted by the news that others were now living with that fear and uncertainty.  Therefore Lord, it seemed appropriate to start this week’s conversations with a prayer of healing for those going through this turmoil.  I wasn’t able to locate a definitive source for this prayer, but it says beautifully what I’ve been praying for:

Dear Lord of Mercy and Father of Comfort,

You are the One I turn to for help in moments of weakness and times of need. I ask You to be with Your servant in this illness. Psalm 107:20 says that You send out Your Word and heal. So then, please send Your healing Word to Your servant. In the name of Jesus, drive out all infirmity and sickness from his body.

Dear Lord, I ask You to turn this weakness into strength, suffering into compassion, sorrow into joy, and pain into comfort for others. May Your servant trust in Your goodness and hope in Your faithfulness, even in the middle of this suffering. Let him be filled with patience and joy in Your presence as he waits for Your healing touch.

Please restore Your servant to full health, dear Father. Remove all fear and doubt from his heart by the power of Your Holy Spirit, and may You, Lord, be glorified through his life.

As You heal and renew Your servant, Lord, may he bless and praise You.

All of this I pray in the name of Jesus Christ.

Amen.

~Phather Phil

Mercies in Disguise

Dear Lord; Happy Friday Father!

Ten years Lord… Ten years.

Thank You… Thank You… Thank You… Thank You!

This weekend Father, as You’re aware, we’re celebrating 10 years that our oldest son Jonathan has been off of chemotherapy, and other than for a few atypical skin irregularities that were removed as a safety measure, in remission.

While we live each day knowing that there’s still no cure for his disease (Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis), and that it could rear it’s ugly head at any time, we also know that we rest in Your Healing Hands and that even in our darkest moments of despair, You were always with us.  I realize that our earthly lives are temporary and precious gifts Father, and I thank You from the bottom my heart for continuing to Bless us with Jonathan’s presence here among us.

Driving in to work this morning, I was listening to a song called “Blessings” sung by Laura Story.  Although I’d heard it before, for some reason the lyrics struck a chord in my heart today and very much fit in with the thoughts I’ve been having about that first 14 months of Jonathan’s life.  The chorus states:

‘Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

It’s that last line that gets me Lord… What if…

I know one thing for sure Father, the trials we endured during that terrifying time have irrevocably changed us.  In my case, You took that tragedy and used it as a starting point for my path back to You.  In the pit of my anguish, You saved me, and exposed me to lessons I desperately needed to learn.  Much of my life since that time has been shaped by those painful, joyous teachings, and for that I thank You.

Heavenly Father, we rejoice in the Blessing of health You’ve granted our son Jonathan these past ten years.  I pray that You continue to keep him in Your Loving Arms, and that Your Healing and Comfort is felt by others who are going through such trials.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

P.S.  For those reading this who may not be familiar with Jonathan’s story, I’ve written articles about it on several occasions, including : “Then and Now, Lessons Learned” and “I’m Sorry, and Thank You”.