Must Not Break His Word

Dear Lord; Good evening Father!

Following yesterday’s discussion Father, I thought I’d continue with further insight I’ve derived from the Book of Numbers.  While many verses lead me to contemplate, ponder and draw lessons from them, there are others that are less… subtle.  Such is the beginning passage from Numbers 30:

“Moses said to the heads of the tribes of Israel: “This is what the Lord commands: When a man makes a vow to the Lord or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said.”” – Numbers 30:1-2 (NIV)

Now Lord, this may seem to be an obvious directive to follow in everyday life, but I see this command skirted nearly every day in some way.  As a society, I think it’s become apparent that although we all know trust, honor and honesty are qualities that should be valued and maintained, in far too many cases we all fall short to a great degree.

The news media is filled with stories of lies, dishonesty and unethical behavior almost daily.

The “Art of the Deal” is held by many to be more important than integrity.

Cheating on your spouse is very often portrayed as “dangerous and sexy” by TV and movies.

Popular media focuses on finding “gray areas” of behavior, rather than condemning improper choices.

Instead of being able to rely on someone’s word, we fill the coffers of lawyers and are forced to “cover ourselves”.

Heavenly Father, please help focus me to make correct and proper choices each day in accordance with Your Word.  Guide me to be an ethical and moral person, and to bring that perspective to my children as well.

“Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity.” – W. Clement Stone

Amen.

~Phather Phil

Musings on the Weekend

Dear Lord; Good evening Father!

I know it’s not usual for me to write on Sundays Lord, but so much has happened over the last few days that I wanted to share with You while the events were still fresh in my mind.  It’s been an awesome weekend, and I’m very thankful for all You’ve Blessed me with.

It all began Friday night with the launching of our “Dinner and Drinks on the Deck” evening get-togethers.  This is something we started last year, and ended up having around 15 of them over the course of the spring and summer.  They’re informal cookouts attended by family and friends on Friday evenings where everyone brings something to share, and we provide the grilled food and snacks.  The adults get to relax, sit around the fire pit and wind down from the work week while the kids all get to burn off some steam together.  It’s a wonderful way to kick off the weekend, and this past Friday went extremely well.  In fact, we’ve already had quite a few inquiries about next weekend.  🙂

Saturday morning, Shannon went and taught violin lessons in town and with the help of a good friend I did some heavy-duty scrubbing of our master bathroom.  It had been far too long since I’d had the opportunity to clean and disinfect it thoroughly, and it was satisfying to see it all sparkling clean and smelling fresh.  My words to You from Thankful Thursday came immediately back to mind!

Saturday evening I dropped the kids off at one of their friends’ house for a sleepover visit, while Shannon and I got to enjoy a “date night” out.  We met up with some good friends for a fun dinner, then headed out to a local party for some dancing and socializing.  While we love our children dearly, the opportunity to get out as a couple now and again helps us to “recharge our batteries” and focus on the intimate bond we’re Blessed to have between us.  Saturday night was a great time, and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.

Early Sunday, Shannon headed off to play viola at a wedding with the other ladies in her quartet while I got an unheard-of morning to sleep in a bit, and have some “quiet time” relaxing and communing with You.  The boys went to church with the family they had stayed with, and had a wonderful time at Sunday School and participating in the worship service.  I picked them up shortly afterwards, and we headed out to have lunch and spend the day hiking and shooting photos nearby.  It was a bit overcast today, but the temperature was perfect and we managed to get time to walk both out at Blackbird State Forest and then about a half-hour away on the sands of Woodland Beach.  I love spending these moments with them, and each new excursion we take together brings us closer to each other, and to You.

Here are some of the photos I shot today that made me smile Father:

The boys paused for this shot while we were walking down one of the many nature trails in Blackbird Forest.

Always the adventurer, Aidan forges ahead of us, setting the pace.

Jonathan’s photography skills have improved markedly over the last year.  I’ve really enjoyed teaching him about lighting and composition, and he’s really having fun seeing what he can do with the camera.

This little fellow was being harassed by a group of other ducks and was just frazzled beyond words.  I loved the expression and attitude he was exuding and was Blessed to catch this shot.

All in all Father, it was the best weekend we’ve had in a long time and I thank You from the bottom of my heart.  You Bless my family and I in so many ways Lord, and I am very deeply grateful for Your Presence and Guidance in our lives.

Heavenly Father, once again I thank You for a wonderful, relaxing weekend with family and friends.  Please guide my decisions and actions in the coming week to best serve Your Will, and to share Your Light with those around me.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

Happy 200th Father!

Dear Lord; Happy Monday Father!

Today Father, I received a wonderful surprise when I logged into the statistics page for PhatherPhil.org.  Yesterday’s Easter Day Post “Christ is Risen!” was my 200^th article, with a total of 1,200 comments to date and as of this moment, 12,105 site visits since I began writing it last year.  It’s been a wonderful journey Lord, and I feel truly Blessed to have had this level of interest in and response to our daily conversations.  Through this ministry I’ve grown steadily in my Walk with You, found fellowship with  some absolutely wonderful people, and hopefully passed on Your Messages in ways that have proved valuable to others.  Either way, I want to thank You for our daily “chats”, and very much look forward to the next 200.  🙂

Easter weekend was wonderful as well Father.  From the small gathering of people we had over for the kickoff of our Spring and Summer “Dinner and Drinks on the Deck” Friday evenings, to celebrating the Glory of Christ’s Resurrection with friends and family Saturday and Sunday, it was a Blessed time and Your Presence was felt in abundance.

As the weather abated, I also was able to spend some time enjoying one of my hobbies; photography.  And while these shots are certainly not representative of my best work from an artistic perspective, they made me smile so I thought I’d share them all the same:

Jonathan was in rare form at “Uncle” Steve and “Aunt” Kay’s house on Saturday.  While not blood-related, we consider them family in the truest sense of the word, and the boys love them to no end.  In this shot he was out in the yard, playing with their dog and having a wonderful time doing so.

While the children ran around and blew off a little excess sugar energy, Shannon got the opportunity to relax a bit and work on a crocheting project.

While I don’t remember the conversation he was having when I shot this, I loved the light and shadows and the expression on Aidan’s face.

All in all Lord, it was a peaceful, inspired and Blessed Easter Weekend and I thank You for those Gifts.  The Glory of what this wondrous event signifies was on my heart throughout, and as You know I spent a great deal of time in contemplation of your Love for us all.

Heavenly Father, thank You so much for our daily conversations; they truly Bless me well beyond written words on a page.  I pray that our relationship continues to deepen, and that through what we’ve begun I’m able to continue to use this site to serve Your Will, and reach out to those in need.  Amen.

~Phather Phil

In God We Trust

Dear Lord; Happy Monday Father!

First off Lord, I want to thank You for a lovely weekend.  Jonathan was feeling a bit better, so we were able to get out to visit with some good friends Saturday night and then spent Sunday afternoon and evening with my father (the earthly one… 🙂 ) and his wife.  The children love visiting with their grandparents, and it was wonderful to be able to get out and spend time with them.  All in all, a very restful and enjoyable couple of days and I thank You for that time of respite.

This evening Father, I’d like to discuss something that’s been on my heart quite a bit as of late.

A couple months ago, I was contacted via email by a lady I hadn’t met before about possibly presiding over her upcoming wedding.  She was a friend of a very good friend of mine, so I asked some questions to make sure it was feasible for me to do so.  The date seemed fine, but she really didn’t have much of an idea of what kind of wedding ceremony she was interested in.  I pointed her to some online resources with sample ceremonies and told her to look through them to get some ideas about what fit her and her fiancée’s wishes.  Last week, I finally got around to reading my emails on that account and found that she’d sent me what she deemed the “perfect” script for her special day.

There was absolutely no reference to You in any way, shape or form.

The ceremony she’d chosen was a completely secular proceeding, save for an “optional” prayer at the end.  Now Father, it was a lovely, very sentimental and poetic script to be sure, but in my mind it completely misses the point; marriage is of Your Design for us:

“But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female’.  For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.  So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” – Mark 10:6-9 (NIV)

I sent the bride-to-be a politely worded response that although it was a lovely secular ceremony, it was my responsibility as a Christian Minister to bring Your Presence to the proceedings, and that I wasn’t able to represent Your intentions for the Holy Bond of marriage properly with that script.  I hold marriage to be one of Your most personal and intimate Gifts to us, and I feel it’s very important to honor that Blessing appropriately during the formation of that union.

Needless to say, I haven’t heard back from her as of yet.

But this got me to thinking Father… Aren’t we doing the same thing in many other ways as well in society today?

We’ve removed open prayer in schools and many other public places as to not “offend” anyone.

Television commercials are being banned from airing during certain popular television programs to avoid giving a “platform” to any religious groups.

The Pledge of Allegiance has been under attack because the words “under God” upset some people.

It’s disturbing to say the least Father, and I’m seeing more and more signs of it each day.  In an effort to not be “confrontational”, we as Christians in many cases “drop the ball” when reflecting Your Light and passing along Your Message of Love and Hope to others around us.

Heavenly Father, You’ve Blessed us all with remarkable gifts.  Please help strengthen and embolden us to carry the lantern of Your Light proudly in front of us so that everyone may see Your Wonders and feel Your Presence.  In God we Trust. Amen.

~Phather Phil

The Divine Marriage Counselor

Dear Lord; Good afternoon Father!

Last night Lord, I finally got a chance to sit down and watch the first in a series of video podcasts put out by Cross Point Church focusing on marriage.  The series is entitled “5 Things”, and focuses on five areas which if not recognized and tended to carefully, could cause serious and possibly dangerous consequences to a marriage.  The episode I watched last night was entitled “Leftovers”, and was taught by Pastor Pete Wilson.

Now, I’m not going to get into details about the content of the podcast as I think it’s very worthwhile for others reading this post to watch it for themselves, instead of simply gaining my take on it.  Pastor Pete’s message is well thought out and delivered, and I’m looking forward to viewing the rest of the series.  For those who are interested, the video podcasts from Cross Point Church are available here.

As You know Father, my marriage to Shannon is something that I spend quite a bit of time talking with You about.  You’ve Blessed me beyond words with our life together, and I am truly thankful for having her as my wife.  Watching the Cross Point video last night, I started thinking back over the trials we’ve experienced in our nearly 16 years together, and how You’ve used those times of struggle to highlight Your Gifts to us, and bring us closer in Your Love.  Like any other couple we absolutely have our moments of discord Father, but funny enough love wins out every time.  Thank You so much for being our marriage counselor over the years.  🙂

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NIV)

Having an instruction manual really is handy Lord.

Heavenly Father, I thank You for being a Guiding and Strengthening Presence in our marriage.  I pray that You continue to Bless our union, and that we’re able to share Your message of Hope and Love with those around us.  Amen.

~Phather Phil