see any pattern here?
Let's see if you can pick up a pattern here a little quicker than I did.... I'll even give you a hint... here's how it plays out... listen.... here is the lie.... "Philip.... God has this great purpose for your life... He will bring about this great purpose thru you....His humble servant... Philip" Wow... go for it big guy!
It was 1968.... it was obvious... I read all the faith books I was given... God was going to raise up a mighty money machine for His kingdom... He would raise it from the ashes of the fire that had destroyed our manufacturing building... miracle after miracle... He showed me for a year and a half just how He was going to do that... then He stopped it all and showed me that in fact He was not going to do it.
What? Did God change His mind? Did God contradict Himself? I was just barely starting out on the journey. Hadn't learned the answer to those things yet. So I reached the brilliant conclusion that this was because God had something greater and more important for me to do.... it was to open a Christian Bookstore ... with humble beginnings but great things ahead...
Hmmm... couldn't make a living from it... so I guess the bookstore would be my "ministry" and I was to make a living in the business world after all... only this time I would not be unequally yoked with unbelievers... I would be in business with another Christian... and this time...together... we would make a million dollars for Jesus!..... :)
Hmmmm... that sorta kinda worked for a year... until Ellen went and got herself pregnant and had to stop working... can you imagine that... Philip then had to give away the business that God had clearly shown Him to get into... and go get a real job... working as a union roofer! Didn't make any sense at all. Did God contradict Himself again?
Of course not... (more brilliant conclusions)... this had all happened in order to humble Philip in order to prepare him to be able to handle the great Bookstore Ministry God had planned for him from the beginning... Philip was now able to go full time in what was becoming one of the largest Christian Bookstores on the East Coast... it was 1972... and not only that great and wondrous thing...but Philip was soon to have his very own half hour evangelical radio ministry on WWDJ radio in New Jersey! Does it get any better than this? Of course... God is on my side... wants me to do great things..... :)
In 1974 Philip was then sought out by the 700 Club television ministry to be their Area Director for the Metropolitan New York City area! Whoa baby... watch my smoke... :)
Two years of experiences later and God clearly showed me it was time to resign from the 700 Club... shut down my radio program... and give away my bookstore empire.... that was no longer God's perfect will for my life. What? God changed His mind... again...? Another contradiction?
I still didn't get it. Like I said I am a bit slow to learn.... Yet one more brilliant conclusion... all this other stuff... all these things that had happened... were only because God was preparing me to do ... what He really really had in mind all the time.... hmmmm....
See any pattern here? I still didn't.... stay tuned for the rest of the story!
:)
It was 1968.... it was obvious... I read all the faith books I was given... God was going to raise up a mighty money machine for His kingdom... He would raise it from the ashes of the fire that had destroyed our manufacturing building... miracle after miracle... He showed me for a year and a half just how He was going to do that... then He stopped it all and showed me that in fact He was not going to do it.
What? Did God change His mind? Did God contradict Himself? I was just barely starting out on the journey. Hadn't learned the answer to those things yet. So I reached the brilliant conclusion that this was because God had something greater and more important for me to do.... it was to open a Christian Bookstore ... with humble beginnings but great things ahead...
Hmmm... couldn't make a living from it... so I guess the bookstore would be my "ministry" and I was to make a living in the business world after all... only this time I would not be unequally yoked with unbelievers... I would be in business with another Christian... and this time...together... we would make a million dollars for Jesus!..... :)
Hmmmm... that sorta kinda worked for a year... until Ellen went and got herself pregnant and had to stop working... can you imagine that... Philip then had to give away the business that God had clearly shown Him to get into... and go get a real job... working as a union roofer! Didn't make any sense at all. Did God contradict Himself again?
Of course not... (more brilliant conclusions)... this had all happened in order to humble Philip in order to prepare him to be able to handle the great Bookstore Ministry God had planned for him from the beginning... Philip was now able to go full time in what was becoming one of the largest Christian Bookstores on the East Coast... it was 1972... and not only that great and wondrous thing...but Philip was soon to have his very own half hour evangelical radio ministry on WWDJ radio in New Jersey! Does it get any better than this? Of course... God is on my side... wants me to do great things..... :)
In 1974 Philip was then sought out by the 700 Club television ministry to be their Area Director for the Metropolitan New York City area! Whoa baby... watch my smoke... :)
Two years of experiences later and God clearly showed me it was time to resign from the 700 Club... shut down my radio program... and give away my bookstore empire.... that was no longer God's perfect will for my life. What? God changed His mind... again...? Another contradiction?
I still didn't get it. Like I said I am a bit slow to learn.... Yet one more brilliant conclusion... all this other stuff... all these things that had happened... were only because God was preparing me to do ... what He really really had in mind all the time.... hmmmm....
See any pattern here? I still didn't.... stay tuned for the rest of the story!
:)
