Teach Them Diligently

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” – Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (ESV)

Cultivating a love of the Lord in our children’s hearts is an important part of our role as parents.  And while instructing them in God’s Word is an integral part of that nourishment, we also need to remember that our children watch and emulate our words and actions as well.  The best way to raise God-loving, respectful, humble, giving children is to live our own lives that way.  Do you show your children the light of Christ each day, or is it “Do what I say, not what I do”?

Swamped by the Waves

“And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?” – Matthew 8:23-27 (ESV)

Like the disciples in that boat, often in our lives it feels as if we’re in the center of a raging storm with no safe harbor in sight.  If we lay aside those fears and doubts and place our whole trust in Christ’s benevolent desires for us, those crashing waves and battering winds soon lose their strength.  In His loving embrace we can always find the peace and fortitude we need to face our worldly trials.

Thankful Thursday: Daily Inspirations

Dear Lord; Happy Thankful Thursday Father!

Today Father, I want to take a moment to say thank You and to celebrate some changes here at PhatherPhil.org.

When You led me to begin this site a little over a year ago, I really had no distinct idea as to what direction it would take, what I’d write about each day, or who in the world would possibly have interest in reading it.  I certainly didn’t see myself as a writer, but You were diligent in Your pursuit of me taking on this endeavor so I followed those urgings, and 327 posts later, here I am.  🙂

Over the last few months Lord, I’ve felt You urging me once again to take another step with this outreach.  One of the things I hear most when talking to people is that they’re unsure how the Scriptures pertain to their lives and situations today.  To help with answering those questions, I’ve begun something new here at PhatherPhil.org.

The site has now been divided into two blog threads; the “Emails to God” I’ve been posting for the last year, and a new section called “Daily Inspirations”.  Each post in “Daily Inspirations” will contain a Bible Passage, accompanied by a short message connecting those wisdoms and truths to our world today.  The posts from both sections will all be visible together on the home page, or can be viewed independently on their respective pages as well.  Along with this new blog thread, I’ve also added a “Contact Me” page to allow a more private connection with the readers if they so desire.

I’m truly thankful for this ministry You’ve led me on Father.  Through it I’ve connected with some wonderful people, had the opportunity to minister to the needs of others, and in the process nourished my relationship with You as well.  It’s been an amazing Blessing in my life this past year, and I’m excited to see where You’ll lead me each day.

To add to that note of thanks Lord, I’d like to continue my Thankful Thursday list from last week.  This past week, I’ve been especially grateful for :

376. The opportunity You’ve given me to minister to others through PhatherPhil.org.

377. Shannon helping with nighttime “dog duty” so I could get some rest.

378. That our Tuesday night Bible Study group wants to continue meeting after the conclusion of the “Treasures of the Transformed Life” series next week.

379. The beautiful colors the trees take on in Autumn.

380. Spending some “Down Time” with Jonathan and Aidan.

381. The urgings You place on my heart to reach out and share Your Truth with others.

382. Hot Apple Cider K-Cups for our Keurig.

383. Breathing treatments that help me combat the effects of my current respiratory illness.

384. An evening of good food and fellowship at the “Heart and Hand” dinner last Saturday.

385. Making good progress on the redesign of Ewell’s St. Paul UMC’s web site.

386. The helpful staff at our local Christian Bookstore : “The Branch”.

387. Lessons in a foggy morning.

388. Half-price “post-Halloween” candy sales.

389. The brightest star in my sky.

390. The selfless sacrifices that our Veterans and Active Duty Military make each and every day.

Heavenly Father,

We thank You Lord, for the multitude of Blessings you bestow on us each day; both those that light up the sky with Your brilliance, and those that grace us quietly from the shadows.  I thank You from the bottom of my heart for guiding me along this journey Father, and for drawing me ever closer to You in the process.  More of You Lord, less of me.

In Jesus’ Name we pray,

Amen.

~Phather Phil

Justified by Faith

“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” – Romans 5:1-5 (ESV)

When we fully accept Christ into our hearts and are no longer at odds with God, His peace can then transform us.  Through that overwhelming love our trials take on their proper perspective; allowing us to rejoice in times of both struggle and abundance, secure in the knowledge of our Heavenly Father’s benevolent desire for us.

Set My Feet Upon a Rock

“I waited patiently for the Lord;
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
He drew me up from the pit of destruction,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the Lord.” – Psalm 40:1-3 (ESV)

At some point in our lives, there will come a time where we feel like we’ve hit rock-bottom.  In that moment of despair, take heart in the fact that while we’re fearful, anxious and shaken… God isn’t!  Lift your burdens to the hands of the One who never falters, and let Him use those trials to draw you to His side.

The Brightest Star in the Sky

Dear Lord; Happy Tuesday Father!

You know Father, with the multitude of Blessings You surround me with each day, I find it both fascinating and wonderful that when I allow my thoughts to drift and ponder those many gifts, my wife Shannon’s face is always the brightest star in the sky.  Of course Lord, I’m by no means discounting the other miracles You’ve placed into my life, but the longer that she and I are together and the more we go through, the more I realize that Your intentions for marriage are truly foundational.

And although I would never presume to comprehend Your scope on the subject Father, over the time that I’ve been married to Shannon I do believe I’ve come to understand some of the fundamental reasons why You’ve brought us together…

You desire that we should have intimate companionship.

Although obviously sex is a piece of this Lord, it’s not entirely to what I’m referring.  We’re Blessed with many relationships throughout our lives, but when we honor the divine nature of marriage by nourishing, encouraging and sharing completely with one another, it provides an amazingly deep, intimate connection that only You could have designed.

Marriage confronts us with the fact that we’re generally self-centered beings by nature, and helps us learn to place others first.

Our flesh wants.  It’s that simple.  From the first minute we become aware of ourselves, we’re driven by our earthly shells to seek gratification in the basic and flawed attempt to find happiness.  In many ways, it’s the ultimate paradox; to find the peace and contentment that a relationship with Jesus offers, we must first learn to see past our selfish natures and give of ourselves with a joyous heart.  In the same respect, for our marriages to live and thrive we need to learn to place our spouse, and our union, ahead of ourselves.

By joining us together as man and wife, You draw us closer to You through that union.

When we’re brought together through the union of marriage, we’re in fact taking on a third member of the family… You, Lord.  Through Your ordainment of a couple’s commitment to one another, You connect through that Blessing in an amazingly powerful way.  While it’s obviously important for each of us to seek and nourish a personal relationship with You Father, it’s no less important to cultivate and maintain a deep connection with You as a married couple.  By keeping You as an integral part of our marriages, we bring ourselves closer to one another in the process.

“And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” – Ecclesiastes 4:12 (ESV)

Heavenly Father,

Through the gift of marriage Lord, You draw us together in example of Your love for us.  Please help strengthen our commitment to one another, and to glorifying You through our nourishing of this holy union.

In Jesus’ Name we pray,

Amen.

~Phather Phil