Our Spiritual Surge Suppressor

Dear Lord; Happy Friday Father!

Wow Lord… What a hectic day it’s been!  As I’m sure You’re aware, we had some violent thunderstorms roll through here last night which always causes a “surge” (pun intended) in business the next day.  In this instance, one of my clients took a spike which routed through their network wiring, killing off five machines and several pieces of infrastructure hardware… Not a pretty picture.  As I was surveying and extracting the damaged equipment for repair this morning, it got me thinking that sin works very much like that surge…

Once we allow sin to enter our lives, it runs rampant, corrupting and damaging everything else it can.

Now, in this client’s case there was very little they could have done to prevent this particular hit from doing damage; we’re very much the same way with regards to sin.  While as Christians, we try to avoid sin wherever we can, we’re certainly not always successful.  It’s a constant battle in our souls Father; the pull of our corrupted, sinful natures versus the righteousness of Your Spirit within us.  Thankfully, with Jesus Christ as our “Spiritual Surge Suppressor”, we have the protection we need to arrest sin’s progress in us so we can best operate as You intend.

Heavenly Father, as we go into the weekend we thank You for all the Blessings You’ve surrounded us with this week.  I pray that for all of life’s “surges” that present themselves, we remember to place our trust in the One that can see us through the storms safely.

In Jesus’ Name we pray,

Amen.

~Phather Phil

Thankful Thursday: Kampers Give Thanks

Dear Lord; Happy Thankful Thursday Father!

As I wrote to You yesterday Father, Wednesday morning I was Blessed with the opportunity to visit Kay’s Kamp at St. Andrew’s School, and got to witness first-hand the wonderful work the Kamp Staff does for the children that attend.  As Jonathan has been a Kamper since they opened their doors in 2009, it was an emotional and eye-opening visit for me, and I left feeling very thankful for the Blessings You deliver through their hands.

As part of my visit, I spent time with the “Newsletter Group”.  Each day at Kamp, a newsletter is created by the staff and children which describes what’s going on, reports on Kamp gossip and lists some answers to interview questions posed by the Kamp “reporters”.  With the assistance of the staff, I was able to add a question to the list for the day…

What about Kamp are you thankful for?

Here are their answers Father.  🙂

– All the activities we do because can’t do this stuff at home.

– The Pillow Fairy coming every year.

– That kids get to enjoy themselves here!

– Thankful for just being here.

– Pranking the boys.

– Sports and Games.

– Coffee.

– Zoo Keepers.

– Just being part of it.

– The food.

– Bathrooms.

– Dessert.

– Jennie and all floaters.

– Bugspray.

– Learning new things.

– For coming here every summer.

– The Kampers.

– Derek.

– The kitchen staff.

– The counselors.

– Markie.

– Mr. Bling.

– Kristin.

– All the stuff they do for us so we can have fun.

While I don’t actually know what all of these mean, or who some of these folks are Father, it’s obvious that the staff and the Kampers are very thankful for this week of fun.  🙂

Heavenly Father, for all of the Blessings you bestow on us each day; both those that are obvious and those that grace us without fanfare, we give thanks.  I pray that Your Light continues to brighten our hearts, and that we are effective in shining that divine radiance to those around us.

In Jesus’ Name we pray,

Amen.

~Phather Phil

Pray for Them

Dear Lord; Happy Tuesday Father!

You know Father, You’ve been quite “chatty” with me as of late.  I mean, I “hear” from you rather often in general; through quiet whispers on my heart, subtle “out of track” thoughts crossing my mind, and by recognizing Your guidance in the Blessings around me.  Lately however, Your “nudges” have become more and more regular and in many cases, the message has been the same…

“Pray for them.”

Now Lord, when I see someone obviously in need of Your help, I always try to lift them up in prayer.  Lately however, You’ve been telling me to pray for people in situations where my first inclination on how to react is certainly not prayer…

A client who my staff and I bent over backwards to help is complaining and arguing about the bill…

“Pray for them” You told me.

In the midst of some marital turmoil, the wife of someone I care about is saying and doing spiteful and selfish things to her spouse and family…

“Pray for them” You told me.

An employee of a close friend of mine’s business is feeling “put-upon”, and is saying and doing sneaky and hateful things to him and his company…

“Pray for them” You told me.

A lady that my wife used to consider a friend has begun lashing out at her and others with petty, demeaning and insulting exchanges and actions…

“Pray for them” You told me.

Ok Father… Message received.

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. – Matthew 5:44-45 (NIV)

While I never really considered these people “enemies” per-se, apparently my heart had passed judgment all the same, making my perspective the same nonetheless.  Lifting these situations and those involved to Your mercy places them into Hands that can truly mend lives, and fulfills Your Will for my role as well.

Thank You so much for these convicting reminders Father, and for all of Your guidance in my life.  I’m most certainly a work in progress, but I pray that through Your direction I continue to emerge from my broken shell into Your Light.

Amen.

~Phather Phil

Meditations Monday: Building Others Up

Dear Lord; Happy Meditations Monday Father!

First off Lord, I want to begin the week by thanking You for all the Blessings You granted us this past weekend.  The medication the veterinarian put Merlin on seems to have abated the seizures, and although the effects are still taking their toll, he’s made a marked improvement.  Saturday night Shannon got to go out with her mother and uncle to see a musical production of “Kiss Me Kate” held at Longwood Gardens, and the boys and I got some time to “hang out” and do some fun cooking with friends.  And Sunday after church we delivered Jonathan to Kay’s Kamp for his week away, and then spent the rest of the day relaxing together at home.  All in all Father, it was a wonderful weekend’s respite and I thank You for that time!

Today’s Meditations Monday Scripture comes from Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians, Chapter 4:

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. – Ephesians 4:29 (NIV)

You got me this morning on this one Lord.  Driving into work I was running a little behind and the car in front of me was crawling along a bit under the speed limit…

“I wish these people would learn how to drive!” I exclaimed.

“Phil… You know better.” You whispered back.

Busted.

You’ve actually been correcting me along these lines quite a bit lately Father, and it’s been humbling as to how often I find myself saying or thinking unkind or unflattering things about other people.  I allow personal frustrations such as being a little late for work to set the tone in my head, and like a weed in a flower bed the negative feelings spread to the rest of my thoughts.  Little moments like this morning’s outburst, although no one was there to hear it (except You of course…), still serve to poison our spirit and can further affect other parts of our lives.

Thankfully, Your gentle reminders to keep my mood in check have helped me to make a positive change in that respect.  There is however, certainly still room for improvement, as this morning’s experience displayed.  🙂

Heavenly Father, as we begin this new week please help us to shine Your Light to those around us, not mire them in the grey clouds of our own inner conflicts.  Our words are powerful influencers Lord, and I pray that You guide our usage of them to best encourage and support Your Children.

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. – James 1:19-20 (NIV)

Amen.

~Phather Phil

Prayers for a Friday

Dear Lord; Happy Friday Father!

As a closing to our postings this week Lord, I’d like to offer up a few prayers if I may.

As You know Father, yesterday morning for no obvious reason our beloved American Eskimo dog Merlin started having severe seizures.  We’ve only seen these with him once or twice before when he was extremely stressed or anxious, such as when he was being boarded overnight or getting examined by a veterinarian.  Each time prior to this, the seizures were isolated incidents, lasting only thirty seconds or so.  Yesterday, he had five episodes over the course of the day with no apparent triggers, each lasting upwards of three minutes.  Shannon took him to our vet first thing this morning, and they’ve put him on medication to try and “break the cycle”.  We’re very hopeful this will get a handle on these attacks, but truly aren’t sure what the outcome of this situation will be.  We consider him a loved member of our family Lord, and pray that You bring Your healing touch to his aid.  Please comfort him through this frightening ordeal, and fill him with the understanding that he’s loved not only by his family, but by the Father of all Creation as well.

On a happier note Lord, this Sunday begins Jonathan’s week away at Kay’s Kamp.  Kamp has become one of the highlights of Jonathan’s year, and he’s extremely excited to be attending this coming week.  And this year Father, I’m actually a little excited about it myself.  Through the kindness of the Kaylyn Elaine Warren Foundation I’ve been given the opportunity to go on Wednesday for the “Media Day” event with other journalists and members of the press, to chronicle the wonderful work You do through this amazing group of people.  Please bestow Your Blessings upon the staff and campers this coming week, and aid this giving group of people in their mission to shine Your Light into these children’s lives.

And finally Father, I pray for You to bring Your comfort and peace to a friend of ours that’s dealing with the results of a house fire this past week.  Open her heart to Your Presence, and embolden her with the knowledge that even in the midst of our struggles, Your strength is greater than any trial we may face.

Heavenly Father, for all the Blessings You’ve graced us with this week, I give thanks.  Please help us maintain the resolve, caring and understanding that we as Followers of Christ need to show the world Your Love, and guide us to best serve Your Will.  Amen.

~Phather Phil