Dear Lord; Happy Monday Father! Well Lord, I just want to thank You for another lovely weekend. Date night with my lovely wife on Friday was a blast, Saturday we began to reclaim our home from the Christmas decorations, and Sunday was a wonderful lazy day watching the epic 1956 film “The Ten Commandments” with my family. The house is still in quite a bit of chaos, but all in all it was a wonderful, productive time and I thank You so much for it.
I also want to take a minute to thank You for sending Your healing power to me over the last week. As You know I ended up at my doctor’s office last Wednesday with serious stomach distress. I was in a fair amount of pain Lord, and while I still have some discomfort it’s worlds better than it was. Thank You so much for Blessing me with an excellent Primary Care Physician, and for Your Comfort during this episode. It’s woken me up to some necessary changes I need to make in my diet, stress level and sleep habits if I want to avoid potentially serious medical issues in the future. Please help me keep proper focus and have the strength to make the right choices going forward.
And finally Lord, I’ve been hearing quite a bit this month about the idea of having One Word to focus and pray on for the new year, instead of a series of resolutions which usually don’t get followed through on. The more I’ve thought about the idea, and seen some examples on other devotional blogs the more I like it. Therefore Father, today I’m starting my prayers for You to help me choose the word that will guide me for the coming year. I place my heart and mind in Your Hands Lord, and look forward to Your Counsel on my focus.
Heavenly Father, please bring Your Loving Presence to all those in need. Help us be productive, focused and compassionate servants of Your Will, and guide us to where we can best be used for Your Grand Purpose. Give Your Comfort and Strength to those who are suffering, and help us all be extensions of Your Love on Earth. Amen.
Dear Lord; Good afternoon Father. I know, it’s usually a morning correspondence but everything kept redirecting me this morning and until now, I didn’t know why. I had a topic of conversation planned for today, but due to discussions with two different friends in the last few minutes, I need to shift my thoughts and prayers to their needs.
Dear Lord, please send Your Healing power to those of whom I speak. Please let them feel Your Loving Arms around them, and the comfort of Your Presence. Nourish and care for their troubled bodies, and lift their spirits that they may know Your Infinite Love is with them.
Dear Lord; First off, let me say Thank You for watching over Jonathan yesterday during his trip. He had a wonderful time, and seems to have learned quite a bit from the experience. Seeing that light in his eyes brings me more happiness than almost anything else in this world.
Secondly, I want to thank You for all of the inspiration You provided me with yesterday while finalizing the wedding script. I have to say, I’m very happy with the results and the Bride seems to be as well. Now I just pray that I can deliver Your Words with the reverence You deserve, and bring Your Loving Presence to those in attendance.
Also in my thoughts today Lord, is my Wonderful Wife Shannon. As You know, she teaches a preschool class and is absolutely amazing at working with those children. Like any group of kids, she has some that are far more challenging than others and over the last couple of weeks she’s been struggling with one in particular. Father, she takes her care of these children so personally that when she has difficulties reaching even one it hurts her heart very deeply. Please comfort her spirit Lord, and fill her with the understanding that every act of love she performs for these little ones is never in vain. Take her in Your Embrace, and let her feel Your Presence so that she can continue to bring her love to these children. Amen.
And today Lord, I’m actually going to add a P.S. to our conversation. The other night on TV, they showed “A Charlie Brown Christmas”. I was thrilled to see a happy piece of my childhood still being aired, and my kids absolutely loved it. More importantly Father, it’s one of the few Christmas specials that talks about the real meaning of Christmas and not the more generalized “Holiday” messages. One of my Facebook friends posted this link this morning, so I thought I’d close by sharing it.
Your Loving Message comes to me in so many ways Lord.
Dear Lord; It seems almost ironic as I’ve been good and sick for the past week, but this morning I’d like to Thank You for my family’s health.
As you’re no doubt aware, we’ve suffered some very serious health issues over the years; Shannon’s multiple back surgeries and gastric bypass complications, Jonathan’s Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis nearly taking him from us and my Mother’s and Grandfather’s early deaths from cancer. And yet, through all of that we were Blessed in many ways that weren’t necessarily apparent at the time. Thinking back on all of those hardships in our lives, I’m now able to see true Blessings and Signs of Your Presence that have helped shape who we’ve become, and made us an even tighter family.
On the health front this year, we’ve actually done very well. Jonathan’s disease has stayed in remission and he’s been able to be a “normal kid” for the most part. Shannon had a brief back strain issue early in the year, but no permanent damage was incurred and she’s been fine since. Aidan, as always, is invulnerable. And as for me, other than a bout of Lyme disease and a couple respiratory bugs (like the one I’ve had this last week) I’ve been pretty solid. All in all, we’ve been extremely Blessed, and I very much Thank You for that.
Therefore Father, my Prayer of Thanksgiving today is focused on the mental and physical Health of Your Children. Please let those in need feel Your Healing Touch, and the comfort that comes from knowing Your Presence. Let us all have the vision to see past the hardships we go through, and experience Your Grace so we may know Peace. Amen. ~Phather Phil
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.
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. 
