Sunshine Through the Rain

Dear Lord; Well Father, I hate to say it but I think you may have left the faucet on over Delaware this morning. 🙂  Funny enough though, as dreary and wet as it is outside today and as daunting the pile of work and projects on my list is, I have an odd feeling of contentment today.  I know in my heart that one way or another, what’s important will get done and what doesn’t get accomplished will be there another day.  I feel You on my shoulder, and know that it’s all well.  Amen.  ~Phather Phil

Blessings to All Your Creatures

Dear Lord; My thoughts to you this morning come from a conversation I had with a good friend of mine regarding the pain she was feeling from the loss of a pet.  Thinking more deeply about the situation, it dawned on me that a great many people are very deeply attached to their pets (myself included… Take a look at my Flickr link in the sidebar for pictures of my dogs :-)).  They provide us love and companionship, and ask for amazingly little in return.  There have been many discussions over the years in a variety of Religious and Philosophical forums as to whether or not animals have souls and if so, when they pass do they go to Heaven, however I’ve never questioned that.  They touch our hearts and spirits in ways few other things can.  If in Your Great Love Lord, You have created Heaven as a Paradise where exists True Happiness, I firmly believe that any of Your creatures that so intensely touch our Spirits will once again meet us in that Garden.  Therefore Heavenly Father, today my prayers go out to our wonderful animals, and to Your children that love and care for them.  Amen.  ~Phather Phil

A Prayer on Election Day

Dear Lord; As You obviously are aware, today is a very important day in America.  Today we once again celebrate the Free Will You’ve lovingly bestowed upon us, and come together to elect representatives that we hope will better our society.  Please help guide our choices that we may see past the deluge of rhetoric that surrounds these proceedings, and make the best possible decisions to move our Country forward.  Amen.  ~Phather Phil

I’m Sorry, and Thank You

Dear Lord; This morning, I want to apologize to You for something, and at the same time to thank You as well.

When my son Jonathan came into the world, he was born with a very rare and very serious disease called Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis which threatened to take him from us.  He was on chemotherapy and a variety of other stringent treatments starting at 10 weeks old, and we spent the following year and a half basically living in the Oncology Ward at A.I. Dupont Hospital for Children.  It was a terrifying time for my Wife and I, and we lived every day not knowing if he was going to be with us much longer.  Like many others have in that position, I asked You WHY, WHY, WHY were you doing this to us… No answer came.

While we were staying there, I was introduced to the Pastor for the Hospital.  He was a quiet man, and although he walked through a place where there was immeasurable sadness and suffering I remember that I always felt an aura of peacefulness around him.  He tried very much to comfort me at the time, but my heart was not ready to hear what he was saying, so I simply informed him that “God and I were having a difference of opinion at the moment as to what was and wasn’t reasonable.”  He smiled, and said that he understood but that when I was ready, he’d be there.  While I didn’t realize it at the time, this was the start of my Spiritual Awakening.

Time passed, and my little angel bucked all the odds and not only came through the treatments, but managed to thrive in the process.  He’ll be 11 soon, and has been in consistent remission for a little over 9 years.  He is very likely my greatest Blessing, and I thank You from the bottom of my soul for continuing to allow me to have him in my life.

Anyways, to get back to the statement I began the email with, during that period of my life I can honestly say that my Faith was at it’s lowest point.  I felt angry, tired, and persecuted and blamed You for all of it.  However, from all of the time we spent at A.I., my eyes were truly opened in a way that I never thought possible.  We witnessed tragedies, and miracles, and amazing acts of compassion and sacrifice.  What I came to realize was that while I was busy blaming You for all my fears and problems, You were actually teaching me about myself, and WHY my Faith is so important.  So Father, I’d like to apologize for my misdirected emotions, and at the same time Thank You for all you taught me through the process.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

Thoughts for the Upcoming Weekend

Dear Lord; Well, the weekend is upon us once again Lord.  It’s been a challenging week for many, and I thank You from the bottom of my heart for helping us get through it.  This is of course, a fun weekend for many filled with costume parties, trick-or-treating and the celebration of “things that go bump in the night”.  Throughout all this nighttime reveling, please watch over us and keep us safe.  Help us make good judgments, and keep the spirit of the festivities light hearted and fun for all.  Amen.  ~Phather Phil