The Phil Files

We love the old Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan movie, Joe vs. the Volcano. For those that like it, it is a cult classic. There is a line in the movie where Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan are floating on Joe’s luggage, lost at sea, and the moon comes up over the ocean. Tom Hanks looks up and says something like, “Dear God, whose name I do not know, I had forgotten how small.”

My daily Bible reading has recently taken me through the book of Isaiah. I haven’t really gotten to the part of Isaiah that is known for it’s great praise of God (Isaiah 40-66). Yet even in the less “God’s grandeur” portion of Isaiah, we meet a God who is global, cosmic, and glorious. After finishing this part of Isaiah, my response is similar to Hanks: “Dear God, who is bigger than all human names used to praise you, I had forgotten how small I am and how expansive and glorious You are!”

As we say the Lord’s prayer today, let’s remember how incredibly awesome God is!

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.

For yours is the kingdom and the power
and the glory forever. Amen.

Any sense of the holy is very hard today. We recognize mystery. We love to be overwhelmed with sensation and often mistakenly tag this as awesome. Jesus, however, challenges me — and you, as well — to see God as holy: something other than we can have or be without the LORD God. He teaches us to pray that God would protect His name and His holiness.

As I’ve pondered this theme, “hallowed by your name,” I’ve found some things that call me back to this principle. I hope the following video will do just that and then invite you to join me in saying the Lord’s prayer, with an emphasis on the Father’s holiness:

(You can find this video by clicking here.)

“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.

For yours is the kingdom and the power
and the glory forever. Amen.”