Excellent article but who is Phil c sharp?
----- Original Message -----
From: "Phil Scovell" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, July 02, 2005 1:58 PM
Subject: Have You Forgotten?
Has God Forgotten About Me?
By Phil Scovell
We walked out of church together one Wednesday evening. The
night was beautiful. It was quiet and only the sounds of the car
doors slamming could be heard. The engine fired and we pulled
away from our parking spot in front of the little church we
attended.
It was silent in the car for some time. Then he spoke. "You
know, Phil," he said, "there's just something I don't understand I
guess."
"What's that, Brother?" I asked; feeling I might have an idea
of what he was thinking.
"They came tonight, as you noticed," he said, "and they
hardly ever come."
"Sure," I replied cheerfully. The came tonight because they
just bought a brand new car that they wanted everybody to see. I
wasn't impressed"
"That's what I don't understand," the 75 year old man said
with a sigh.
"What about it, Brother?" I replied, now knowing exactly what
he meant.
"Well, I don't mean to sound ungrateful, you understand," he
continued with a weariness to his voice, "but it does bother me."
I waited for him to continue; knowing that he would. We had
become close friends over the years and he was like a dad to me.
He was spiritually wise beyond few men I knew and he had only a
fourth grade education. He had raised several children. Two
different sons had been killed by passing cars at two different
times and that was just the tip of the iceberg of all the
adversity he and his wife had suffered through their 50 years of
marriage. I had even told him once that when I grew up, I was
about 49 years old at the time, I prayed God would make me just
like him. I wasn't joking either.
"Here I am," he said, "driving this old beat up car but
don't get me wrong. I'm thankful for what the Lord has given me.
We have a good enough house and all for our age and we are
thankful for it, too. We have loved and served the Lord
cheerfully in the church all these years and we have been
spiritually and financially faithful to the Lord. Yet, a feller
just gets to wondering sometimes."
Of course, what he was really wondering, was why the people
who had been there that evening with their new car, appeared to be
so blessed, especially when their lives, and the lives of their
children, were so screwed up spiritually. Was he wrong for
wondering? Of course not. He also knew way more than I did about
that family. I felt privileged he felt free to share his feelings
with me.
Less than six months later, we were riding in the same old
car to church on a Sunday night and he said, "Phil, I want to tell
you something but I don't want anybody else to know. This is just
between you and me."
"Ok," I agreed, "that's fine. What is it?"
"Well, I want your opinion but just keep this between us
right now."
"Ok," I said again. What is it?"
"Well," he began, it is this way. Ann and I have been given
an opportunity to move back to eastern Kansas. We have a relative
who has almost a brand new four bedroom home they want to sell to
us." As the conversation continued, he explained the house
already had a sloping sidewalk for his wife, who was, at that
time, in a wheelchair, plus centrally air conditioned, and they
had several relatives living nearby and the town was small enough,
you could walk to just about any place you wished. Additionally,
the sale of their house in Denver would allow them to buy their
relative's home and pay cash for it. That's not all. Due to the
sky high house market in Denver, they would be able, after they
purchased the new house, bank 100,000 dollars. I casually pointed
this out to him and suggested this was the Lord.
When he finished, I said, "So what's the problem Brother?"
"Well," he said, "I don't know if we should do it. I mean,
we'll have to move and all and I just don't know. What do you
think?"
I said, "Wait just a minute. You are asking me if you should
make this move or not?"
"Yep. I'm asking your opinion."
I said, "Brother, if you don't take this deal, you've got
rocks in your head. Don't you see it?"
"See what?" he wanted to know.
"Just a few weeks ago, you were feeling the pain of serving
God all your life but living on your social security and hardly
making it each month. Now, the Lord is giving you a chance,
during your retirement years, to live in a beautiful house with
air conditioning, which you don't have now, you can bank a good
hundred grand, and you can go down to the local car dealership and
buy a 40,000 dollar van, if you want to, paying cash for it, and
still have sixty grand left in the bank. What is the matter with
you?" I think he had stopped listening when I mentioned he would
have 100,000 cash left over. I nearly stopped thinking myself
when I thought of God's immense grace he was about to bestow upon
this humble man and his wife.
He said, "I guess you're right. It is the Lord, isn't it?"
I said, "Of course it is the Lord. Who else would pull off
something this big? If you let this go by, Brother, I'm going to
call your relative up myself and take the deal. I'd love living
out there in that little town. If you do it, maybe Sandy and I
will just move out there and rent one of the bedrooms from you."
He laugh as the relief washed over him.
they eventually moved, of course, and one day they drove
their nice air conditioned van back to Denver and took us out to
eat. God doesn't forget. Yeah, but you say, "These people were
old?" Who you calling old here? Sure, now they are about 80
years old but doing well, more active in church than ever before,
and his wife isn't in a wheelchair any more. Like I said, God
doesn't forget. He doesn't forget us if we don't forget who He is. So all
we have to do is remember who He is.
Phil C Sharp
The Coil Of The snake
A Free Online E-Novel
www.SafePlaceFellowship.com
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