The Phil Files

Today has been wild.

First, the local newspaper, The Abilene Reporter News, picked up the story about the “Stethoscope” video hitting the 2 million mark on YouTube — Stephen Corbett and Rob Marcelain had put the video together and acted it out on some original ideas several of us had on illustrating the point, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” It made for lively discussion around town today.

Second, most of the day, I was in a meeting with our ministry team on the idea of Groups — something we are launching in a few weeks. We were making sure we were all on the same page before a “townhall meeting” with our congregation on Sunday night. I shared the clever communication video we used for to explain groups this piece earlier in the week. This video was also done by “Corbett and Crew!”

Third, I ran by the hospital to say “Good bye!” to a precious lady named Lamearl Jacobs who is ready to go home and be with the Lord. She is precious and her family — both physical and spiritual — miss her greatly.

Fourth, after finishing more meetings on Groups, met with a friend about some worship matters and noticed a fire on the north horizon. It looked like it was behind my folks place so I called them to make sure they were safe. They were … for now!

Fifth, I took Donna out to dinner and we had a great visit and saw friends from church. Right before we left for dinner, got an email that MSNBC is sending a reported by on Monday to do a national story on the “Stethoscope” video. Unbelievable. Just thankful that it is touching hearts.

Sixth, got a call from a young man who was trying to reach one of our members from church who was out trying to save his cattle from the out of control brush fire I had seen north of town. We both tried to call him for about an hour before he got to a place he could get a phone signal. Looks like the fire stopped short of his ranch, at least for the moment. But then I realized another friend had a ranch in the area. His place was burned to the ground and he waiting to see if the cattle had escaped to the river bed and survived — most ranchers in this area lost everything! I was exhausted after a couple of hours on the phone checking with everyone.

Seventh, watched the news and weather to check on the fire situation and get caught up on what was happening. Got around to finishing up the follow up post on our blog and Heartlight.org community on helping those who are homebound connect to community. Hope you will read the post and keep adding to the blog discussion: great ideas from you guys out in blogdom.

Whew! Ready to crash. I am wiped out and tomorrow looks to be a bit rugged, too. But not nearly so tough for me as for those who have lost everything to the fire and to the families who have lost loved ones recently. What a tough day for a lot of precious people.

Exclusive! High class!! Well to do!!!

Our plane flew over this area of the metroplex as we flew into DFW airport Monday night. The houses were massive, the lawns well manicured and the SUV’s and sedans were expensive. Yet in the fading light, the houses looked remarkably the same from the air.

Oh sure, there were more gables and more square footage on some than others, but they were still shingled covered boxes surrounded by grass. All that money for the prestige of a great location, the best schools, and privilege — but they were still only shingles on boxes surrounded by grass. And inside, well, I know about the inside — broken hearts, worried parents, struggling marriages, tight finances, confused romances, jangled nerves over 401k’s, and secrets rotting the hearts of their holders. And yes, some hearts seeking for answers, and some living out the answer. It’s a whole lot like a few miles away where there are fewer gables, smaller lawns, and fewer shingles. It’s been my theory that for the most part, most of us have the same amount of “disposable income,” we just have different house/rent payments.

Hmm. Makes me wonder what this stuff we work so hard and stretch so much to acquire — and what we so much fear losing when the economy turns down — it makes me wonder what it all looks like from God’s side of the view. This is not to downplay the obvious anguish of those who have lost their houses or retired couples living out of their cars because of retirement woes.

But so much of the driving force of our “modern economy” is built on sand — credit stretched to the limit to give us what we want. Seems like I remember Jesus saying something about a humpy back camel trying to get his big fat nose through the eye of a sower’s needle and exchanging our souls for something that falls short of real life. None of us is immune to the pressure and desires that move us in this wrong direction.

So I guess what it all comes down to is what’s in the hearts of the folks in those boxes covered by shingles and surrounded by grass — small, large, or just in between sized boxes.
Oh Lord, may the thought of my heart and the words of my mouth be pleasing to you … for You alone are my Rock and Redeemer — especially in times like these.

What a week! Or maybe I should say, “What a weak!”

The latter more reflects the reality. When there is more challenge, more ministry, more need, and just plain ol’ more of more, in a collection of seven days, I am much more reminded of my weakness more than I think of it being just another week. Yet somehow, grace sustains me, God uses me, and people are blessed by my feeble efforts.

I fully admit, this does not make sense. Stellar accomplishments, a great week of work, clicking off the to do list items, making a great presentation, and other things I might “pull off” well could lead me to celebrate my sufficiency. But, it has not been that kind of week. Instead, it has been full of hurt, crisis, frustration, risk, conversation, failure, flawed efforts, grief, battling for life, unexpected awful surprises, wrestling with memories, and a deepening sense of insufficiency. So, at what point does it become perfectly clear that the challenge is beyond my ability to pull off?

The apostle Paul puts it this way:

But he [God] said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me (2 Corinthians 12:9 tniv).

In our “Time in the Word” at Southern Hills, our focus is Colossians. So I came in after a day of ministry — with all its opportunities and reminders of insufficiency — and began to read Colossians … again … looking for some clear word of God to refresh me and help satisfy my spirit. Do you know what struck me?

In this vital letter to help this church stay on track, Paul repeatedly — even nonchalantly — speaks about God being the one who does the “heavy lifting” in the life of His people. Look at some of these key thoughts:

God called Paul to be an apostle: it was His will and commission of Paul (1:1, 25).

God can fill them with the knowledge and wisdom they need to be fruitful and live out His will (1:9-10).

God can strengthen them with endurance and patience (1:11).

God has qualified, redeem, and forgiven His people through Jesus (1:12-14).

God, in Jesus, created everything — seen and unseen — and reconciled them back to Himself (1:15-20.

God empowers Paul to proclaim Jesus and help bring people to maturity in Christ (1:28-29).

There are definite moments when I wonder, “God, who is sufficient for this? How can my feeble words be a blessing? How can my weak efforts make a difference in the face of so much hurt?”

And in those moments, God reminds me that no one is sufficient, but the Father has chosen to work with broken, simple, earthen vessels so that the power and the blessing are clearly not my own, but come from Him (2 Corinthians 4:5-10).

We joke that we have two seasons in West Texas — hot and hotter. In reality, we do have some cold weather in parts of December, January, and February. But we don’t have autumn: we call fall, football season or hunting season. Donna grew up in Ohio with autumn as her favorite season. With the rolling hills and big trees of southern Ohio decked out in a breathtaking array of colors, and the smell and feel of autumn in the air, I can understand why: it is a beauty experienced. However, Donna insists we don’t have autumn in Texas. We accurately call is fall. In her words, “It’s 95 one day, a norther blows through and it’s 25 the next night. On the third day, all the leaves fall off the trees and blow to Mexico.”

Our family, however, is going through a major change of seasons right now. Megan is begins Physical Therapy school. Donna has headed back to teaching for the year. I am geared up for the school year and it’s opportunities at Southern Hills — at church, we describe three seasons of the year (or ministry): Fall Semester, Spring Semester, and Summer Vacation.

But yesterday marked a huge change of seasons for us. Tiny, our miniature dachshund for 12 1/2 years had his back go out this weekend. Megan and I knew before we took him to the vet yesterday what the outcome would be, we just couldn’t talk about it. Tiny has been there for the kids journeys through high school, barking at everything that moved and never slowing down. Until the last two months, he would literally drag us on a two mile walk. It was a hard hour at the vet’s: they were kind, but we still came home without him. Lexi — our little black shy dachshund — looks lost without her guardian and keeper. With a bunch of other pressure, Donna’s start to school and continuing battle with IC, deep concern for a friend who is in the hospital ICU, the AC man stepping through the ceiling in the attic, and now Tiny’s goodbye, it’s been a rugged couple of weeks.

Changes in season are like that sometimes. We often romanticize how the summer slips into Indian summer, and then autumn gently falls upon us. But that’s seldom the way it is. Summer’s green gives way to winter’s chill with withering heat, then thunder, lightning, wind, flash-floods, and cold. We marvel at the flash, we are often humbled by the thunder, and we are rightfully fearful when the showers become torrents. Yet through the pandemonium of it all, we know we will emerge out of it into a new season of shorter days, cooler weather, and the richness of Thanksgiving and the joys of Christmas. So we, those of us in the Warehouse, wait for the flash, rumble, and torrents to pass and trust that somewhere beyond this time lies a great feast and the joy of Jesus.

In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly (Psalm 5:3 tniv).

In the morning, Lord!

There’s a not so old Eagles song, Learn to be Still (written by Henley & Lynch — see lyrics), that “keeps ringing in my head” this morning. Yesterday was one of those days — breakfast meeting at 7:00 and got home after 10:30 evening meeting. The emotionally exhausting day, full of concern for God’s precious and hurting people, has left me depleted this morning.

Rather than concentrating and doing the hard work of study, prayer, and thinking, I’m having to fight to keep myself on track today. I want to run and do a frenzy of little, time consuming jobs that will give me a feeling of accomplishment, but leave the important work of submitting and listening for God’s message, a message I’m suppose to share with His people.

Having ideas and a focus in Scripture isn’t the problem for either message. No, the problem is that I have too many shallow ideas and too many possibilities of messages. Which of these is really from God for my people, this week? Which ones are only titillating distractions that further inoculate God’s people from hearing His clear call to the Cross and to follow Christ?

I guess I need to listen this time, the voice that “keeps ringing in my head” and learn to be still.

What do you do and where do you go to quiet your spirit and learn to be still and hear the voice of our Abba Father?

For several days, the weather forecasters had warned that last night could be a rough one. It seemed fitting that this might be true, since our family’s had a bit of a rough road with medical issues for the last several weeks. Yet last night passed without the typical spring thunderstorm fury we’ve come to expect out here in west Texas. The morning broke bright and clear with a touch of cool in the air and sun streaming down. What a beautiful morning!

As I worked on images and meandered around some Bible verses for my own quiet time this morning, the Lord led me to this verse from Psalm 143:8. It seemed appropriate and it fit an image I was working with for Heartlight graphics:

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.

The image below is much small version of the image I posted to Heartlight’s PowerPoint background Scripture graphics (you can use the search feature to look through thousands of images that can be used in worship or as your computer wallpaper.) This small image gives you the idea, but I hope you can make the prayer your own whether the image interests you or not. Blessings for the weekend and for seeing the way the Lord wants you to go!

You can find three versions of this image, Title (picture above), Text (with the Scripture), and Plain (only the image).