The Phil Files

Several folks asked for a downloadable copy of the morning prayer from yesterday’s post, so I want to post the following link if you like to download it for your own use or to share it with others or your church:

Morning Prayer Download

Also, some have asked about the SpiritFire daily devotional thought on the Holy Spirit. This includes a Biblical passage, a short reflection, and a prayer. It is delivered free each day by email. You can subscribe by sending an email to spiritfire@heartlight.org or by visiting the page online at http://www.heartlight.org/spiritfire

This week, I’ve been trying to do all my church ministry and Heartlight.org work while auditing David Wray’s Spiritual Formation class at ACU. It has been a very busy week, but full of profound experiences, convictions, and experiences. God threw in an incredible Wednesday night devotional that was multi-generational and multi-cultural and involved a refugee couple being baptized into Christ. What an incredibly blessed week! I have much to think about about, some changes to make in my life, and many reasons to rejoice.

Finally, my heart goes out to Colt McCoy who didn’t get to play that final game and lead his team to the national championship. Colt we know you could have made the difference last night, but please know that your example and life of faith has been a blessing to many and made a difference in their lives.

Nothing is more dangerous than this prayer. Nothing is more powerful than this prayer. Nothing invites God into our world more completely than this prayer.

God is sovereign. He can choose to act or intervene or change or shake up or transform our worlds in any way He so chooses. Yet God frequently chooses to wait for us to ask … to pray this dangerous prayer!

“Your will be done!”

Don’t believe this is dangerous? Then go spend time with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 13:32-42). Don’t believe this is both dangerous and glorious? Then go read the words of one of the earliest hymns sung in the early church (Philippians 2:5-11)!

So today, as we say the Lord’s Prayer, let’s pay special attention to the words, “Your will be done!”

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.

Now for some questions related to this theme taken from my Heartlight.org article, Beyond Slogans:

Why do we feel like we have to say something more than “I love you and will stand with you!” when someone faces tragedy, grief, and loss?

• What are other more meaningful things that we can do besides offer folks slogans?

Do you think some of our slogans are intended to defend God when folks are hurt, angry, or feel abandoned by God in a crisis?

• What should we do when folks feel this way toward God?
• How can we help them in ways more important that talk?

What do you consider to be the most meaningful promise found in Romans chapter 8?

• Does it help you understand our disasters to be reminded that we live in a broken world crying out for deliverance from its bondage to decay?
• Why is it important that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us regarding matters that are too deep for words?
• How are the promises of Romans 8:22-29 given power and meaning by the Christ hymn in Philippians 2:5-11 and the example of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 13:32-42)?

Last week, news trickled out of North Korea about a mother being executed for simply handing out a Bible. Her husband and children were sent to labor camp. Charges were trumped up to justify the harsh treatment, but the fear is that North Korea will continue this policy if unchallenged by the free world. Clearly, believers should pray with and for our persecuted brothers and sisters throughout the world.

In addition, my heartlight.org this week is entitled “Follow Me” and focuses on the unjust suffering of by Christians and how process this problem through the eyes of faith. While I ask some questions at the end of the article, I also believe it is appropriate that we pray the Lord’s Prayer today with a special emphasis on being delivered from evil.

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.

It is very late on Friday night and I received a call from the hospital. A father called about his grown daughter (with two kids near the teenage years) who is having emergency surgery as I write this. We prayed over the phone, but I can’t get his concern off of my heart.

I share his concern because I care about him and his daughter, who has battled Crohn’s disease for much of her adult life. We are brothers and sisters in Christ — so when we pray, it is “our” shared concern and so we pray to “our Father” as fathers who care about their kids.

I share his concern because I am a father, too. My kids are always on my heart, but they are especially on my heart right now as they face interesting challenges and great opportunities. So as a father, I pray for our family’s shared concerns and joys by beginning “our Father.”

I pray “our Father” because Jesus emphasized the importance of community and that we are children of God. The Only True and Living God, the Holy and Righteous One, God Almighty, invites us to come and call Him “abba Father” as we pray and the Spirit intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words (Romans 8).

So why not join me tonight, as I pray the Lord’s Prayer, remembering my friend and his daughter, feeling a burden for a close couple friend who wrestle with their grief as they miss their son, loving my own children wanting what is best for them, and knowing that some of you who read this carry burdens that only the Heavenly Father can help you carry.

“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.”

Let’s help each other remember that we are not alone, and by praying “our Father” we remind ourselves of God’s constant and abiding presence (Romans 8:32-39) and our shared family of faith.

“Our Father” please hear our hearts, restore our spirits, and fire our imaginations as we seek to honor You.

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

In my Heartllight.org post this week, called “Godly Organic,” I share the “Spirit-natural” principle that we are made to live and grow. It is who and how God made us to be. When we don’t grow, we know that something is wrong. Yet so often, we settle for just treading water spiritually. The power behind this growth, however, can be found in the prayer we offer for each other and the power of God released to empower us toward this growth:

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God … so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,  being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might (Colossians 1:9-11).

So I want to challenge you to ask yourself a few questions about your own personal growth in the Lord and commit yourself to praying for your brothers and sisters in Christ and releasing the power of God into their lives.

How has God continued to fashion you to be more like Jesus?

Can you say that God is re-creating life in you out of the barrenness and scars of your past life?

What is a sign of growth, God’s power, at work in you?

I’d love to hear your response to these questions!

I was busy hurrying around trying to get caught up on my to do list. I was gone this past week to Alaska and have a bunch of things that need doing. Then, everything changed.

Cindy, an old friend from college, called to say her cousin’s husband, my dear friend, Danny Diaz had collapsed while training for an upcoming marathon. So everything else seems much less important. Please pray for Danny and his wife Nancy, and their children Austin, Abby, and David.

Words seem silly, so I ask again, please pray for my friend and those that are precious to you, as well.