The Phil Files

Ascribe to the LORD, you heavenly beings,
    ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.
  Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
    worship the LORD in the splendor of his 1 holiness.

  The voice of the LORD is over the waters;
    the God of glory thunders,
    the LORD thunders over the mighty waters.
  The voice of the LORD is powerful;
    the voice of the LORD is majestic.
  The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars;
    the LORD breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.
  He makes Lebanon leap like a calf,
  Sirion like a young wild ox.
  The voice of the LORD strikes
    with flashes of lightning.
  The voice of the LORD shakes the desert;
    the LORD shakes the Desert of Kadesh.
  The voice of the LORD twists the oaks 3
    and strips the forests bare.
  And in his temple all cry, “Glory!”

  The LORD sits enthroned over the flood;
    the LORD is enthroned as King forever.
  The LORD gives strength to his people;
    the LORD blesses his people with peace.

\o/ — Comments Psalm 29: The LORD blesses his people with peace! — \o/

Having spent the last week in a part of the country where floods have raged, lightning has sent it’s jagged crackles of electricity across the sky, thunder has rolled across the heavens, and torrential rains have caused flooding, this is a welcome and challenging psalm.

Like the psalmist, I’m reminded of the LORD’s indescribable power and my small place in the universe by such a massive display of natural power. Knowing God’s power if infinitely greater than these limited, but overwhelming displays of power, is both astounding and at the same time comforting. Clearly, I cannot control my own destiny. In the face of natural power, I am small and insignificant. Yet, the LORD chooses to know me and care about me and include me in His people. Because of this grace from the LORD, the LORD who sits enthroned above the flood, the LORD who is enthroned as King forever, I can trust that He will give me the strength I need and the peace I crave.

To this God, the only true and living God, belongs all glory, honor, and praise!

To you, LORD, I call;
    you are my Rock,
    do not turn a deaf ear to me.
  For if you remain silent,
    I will be like those who go down to the pit.
  Hear my cry for mercy
    as I call to you for help,
  as I lift up my hands
    toward your Most Holy Place.

  Do not drag me away with the wicked,
    with those who do evil,
  who speak cordially with their neighbors
    but harbor malice in their hearts.
  Repay them for their deeds
    and for their evil work;
  repay them for what their hands have done
    and bring back on them what they deserve.

  Because they have no regard for the deeds of the LORD
    and what his hands have done,
  he will tear them down
    and never build them up again.

  Praise be to the LORD,
    for he has heard my cry for mercy.
  The LORD is my strength and my shield;
    my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
  My heart leaps for joy,
    and with my song I praise him.

  The LORD is the strength of his people,
    a fortress of salvation for his anointed one.
  Save your people and bless your inheritance;
    be their shepherd and carry them forever.

\o/ — Comments Psalm 28: Be our shepherd and carry us forever! — \o/

In Psalm 23, David speaks of the LORD as his shepherd. I love that imagery. Even more, I love that reality. God shepherds his people. One of the great passages of comfort for God’s people is found in Isaiah:

He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young. (Isaiah 40:11)

The image of God carrying us, of holding us close to His heart in His strong arms is comforting. Even more than just comforting, this assurance of His constant and tender care should inspire us to trust in Him and move our hearts to leap for joy.

Two convictions spring out of this that are important for me. First, my request for the LORD’s care and help are not vain wishes; they are cries for help based on what God has done in the past. Second, knowing God’s demonstrated love and care for us, I should praise Him in anticipation of His action and not simply wait till I see things happen the way I want them to happen.

The LORD is my light and my salvation—
    whom shall I fear?
  The LORD is the stronghold of my life—
    of whom shall I be afraid?

  When the wicked advance against me
    to devour 1 me,
  it is my enemies and my foes
    who will stumble and fall.
  Though an army besiege me,
    my heart will not fear;
  though war break out against me,
    even then I will be confident.

  One thing I ask from the LORD,
    this only do I seek:
  that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
    all the days of my life,
  to gaze on the beauty of the LORD
    and to seek him in his temple.
  For in the day of trouble
    he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
  he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle
    and set me high upon a rock.

  Then my head will be exalted
    above the enemies who surround me;
  at his tabernacle I will sacrifice with shouts of joy;
    I will sing and make music to the LORD.

  Hear my voice when I call, LORD;
    be merciful to me and answer me.
  My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”
  Your face, LORD, I will seek.
  Do not hide your face from me,
    do not turn your servant away in anger;
    you have been my helper.
  Do not reject me or forsake me,
    God my Savior.
  Though my father and mother forsake me,
    the LORD will receive me.
  Teach me your way, LORD;
    lead me in a straight path
    because of my oppressors.
  Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
    for false witnesses rise up against me,
    spouting malicious accusations.

  I remain confident of this:
    I will see the goodness of the LORD
    in the land of the living.
  Wait for the LORD;
    be strong and take heart
    and wait for the LORD.

\o/ — Comments Psalm 27: I will see the goodness of the LORD! — \o/

The LORD is my light, my salvation, and the stronghold of my life. I believe that. I build my life upon that assurance. I trust this is true.

Even in times of distress, I want to be able to say with integrity and confidence, just like the psamist here, I will see the goodness of the LORD in the Land of the living. I believe the Father not only has a place prepared for me with Him eternally, I also believe that the LORD is working in my life to bless me now. Sometimes, however, I miss seeing those blessings because I am impatient or want them to come to me in different ways.

Yet for me to fully appreciate God’s blessings, I must be willing to wait on the LORD’s timing and grace. I need to be strong and take heart. I can do this, because just like the apostle Paul, I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day (2 Timothy 1:12 TNIV).

So the challenge for me today is to wait … to trust … and to be faithful, all while anticipating the LORD’s blessings in my life. I will wait on the LORD!

“Are you guys OK?”

“Where did you go?”

“I didn’t get my daily email devotionals?”

“Our links to you didn’t work. What’s going on?”

To answer your questions with one answer, I will simply say, “Things are crazy here!” I’m in Austin and we moved our servers — 11 of them and several other key parts of our Internet services — from one side of Austin to the other. Things went very well for the early part of the move, although some of you noticed we weren’t available.

After about six hours working on things, we left our set up running just fine. Then, in the middle of the night when our email devotionals were going out, our servers overloaded the circuit they were on and all of Heartlight’s servers went down along with several church web sites, several sites we support in other countries, and all of our email services.

When we awoke this morning, it was like juggling jello — the faster and harder we worked, the messier it got. We believe everything is up and going fine, now, but not without the incredible work of John Kirkland, our chief technical guy. (John’s in the top picture looking calm, cool, and collected as he does his stuff. I’m in the bottom picture looking like a crazed unkempt maniac turned loose in the server farm.)

Anyway, we apologize for the inconvenience and the craziness and we are working to prevent this from happening again. We hope to get all the email for today out, although it will be many hours late.

Please keep us in your prayers. We have a few steps more to complete this move, including moving heartlight.org to a new, faster server. In the interim, things are crazy here … but that is kinda normal!

By His grace,

Phil