NOVEMBER 2025

Ever precious greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ! It is my great honor and high privilege to share my heart with you once again! Debbie and I came into relationship with a church about four years ago, while on our honeymoon. We had simply been searching for a church to worship with when we “sovereignly stumbled” into Layton Baptist Community Church. A quaint family-oriented church in a sleepy little town in the Keys. We immediately fell in love with Pastor Brad, his family, the people there, and his precious and sweet, godly mother, Linda; herself, the refreshing breath of Heaven!

Yes, even on our honeymoon, ministry follows in our train! As you may guess, after 30 brutal years in a maximum security prison (and having smelled nothing but other men), I was laser- focused elsewhere!🙂 I desired relaxing time with my soft, sweet, godly wife, Deborah Ann. We had been together-apart for 26 years when I got out and had never really had any quality time to enjoy each other. Albeit, I am a man of the Book and knew the Lord was first! Thankfully, I can walk and chew gum!😄

We have since gone back there every year to celebrate our anniversary. As such, our relationship with this church has grown and strengthened. As it did, trust was fostered, and we were invited and honored to preach, teach the Word of God, and share our testimonies there many times. Our heart was in this church. We worked with the people there by way of encouragement and loving on them in every way.

This October, Debbie and I were invited down there to minister in a missionary sense this time. We all know that “minister” simply means to serve. For us, that is easy because it is always our heart. They desired for us to come down and “plug in” at their church for a short season and to invest ourselves in them as a church. They put us up and cared for us in a beautiful family home, scenically to die for, on the water’s edge. It was our base of operations. We were asked to do evangelism, discipleship, counseling, and to teach/preach and help, perhaps even to a prison ministry. All right up our alley! Our heart was to challenge them and push them forward biblically. It was our prayer that the Lord would use us. . .

Well, on this particular Tuesday, we were scheduled to serve at a homeless feeding ministry. We were a little behind schedule, and I was zooming around the house trying to remember all that I needed to bring for the moment. Deb was going to drive, and she was already in the car warming it up. I came flying out of the house thinking, “Why am I in a hurry? Jesus was never, is never, and will never be in a hurry, and yet, He is always on time! Whoa big stallion! Pump your brakes and slow down!” Deb said, “You got everything?” With no thought, I chirped, “Yep!” Then, off we went in the joy of the Lord! After about five miles or so, I started to pray over the work that was set before us, holding up the ministry, the people, and for God’s will to be done at the dinner before we even set foot in the place. As I was praying, I happened to look down, and to my shock, I did not have any shoes on! Barefoot is the norm in that weather, and I had simply forgotten to shod myself! Lord have mercy! We quickly determined it was too late to turn around and reasoned within our hearts that it was a homeless ministry – surely they will have some shoes. Little did I know. . .

As the Lord would have it, we pulled into the parking lot, and it was all coral white stone – everywhere! You guessed it – impossible to walk on in bare feet! Deb pulled up as close as she could, eyeing my toes with a godly smirk on her face, and she dropped me off, no shoes and all, laughing as she went to park the car. I sheepishly got out, barefoot and scruffy looking with a bag of tracks and bibles dangling from me and no doubt looking quite homeless myself as I made my way over to the two ladies in front. In their unbelief, they were looking at me with the hairy eyeball as I tried to explain my plight. I’m sure they had heard and seen it all; I was nothing new! “No, really!” I said, “I am a Pastor. I just forgot my shoes, and this is my wife.” Of course, as I turned around to show them Deb to validate me, she was nowhere to be seen! The premeditative aspect of that, on Deb’s part, is yet to be determined.😁

Finally, Deb came around the corner, and in hope against hope, the ladies believed me. I next asked, “Do you have shoes for the homeless? May I borrow a pair?” They smirkingly chimed, “Yes; right over there in that box.” I searched the box. Quite sovereignly, the only thing in the box was a pair of women’s gold-flecked flip-flops! I promptly put them on and walked back over to the now three ladies giggling – the ringleader being my beautiful wife! My ever-biblical Debbie, without a thought, looked me in the eye and humorously posited, “Well, this will be a great conversation starter for the Gospel! I see an “Outside Perspective” coming!” Boom! And on that note – off we went to minister!

Not to worry. I am comfortable in my masculinity; and honestly, I sport women’s gold-flecked flip-flops quite well! I thought, “If my boys back in the prison could only see me now!” It really did turn out to be a conversation starter to say the least! The looks I got were all keepers! As soon as the homeless saw me in those crazy gold flip-flops, they knew – I was one of them! We then spent the whole evening sharing the gospel, loving on the men and women, and feeding them spiritually! You cannot make this up! Deb, to this day, still has that smirk concerning this topic! She has yet to let me live it down!

It is written, “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” (Heb. 4:15 – NKJV)

It was Christ who sought us. He willingly put on the gold-flecked flip-flops of our flesh to meet our need. Even as I wore the shoes of the homeless to share the Living gospel, so also the Lord became flesh and dwelt among us to share Himself, the Life-giving sacrifice. I humbled myself to wear those flip-flops all night long, even as the Lord humbled Himself to the point of death upon the cross. For those with an eye to see, all of our lives are peppered full of relationships that we “sovereignly stumble” into. The premeditative aspect of that, on the Lord’s part, is yet to be determined. By our faith, to see His good purpose in all things (and He is always good), we must be men and women of the Book!

Every physical fluke is a spiritual spring board of opportunity! Did not my wife, without a thought, see my gold-flecked flip-flops as a “conversation starter for the gospel”? What’s in your life as a conversation starter for the gospel? I tell you – much more than you think! What is the base of operations for your ministry? You have a ministry you know! (2 Cor. 5:17-21) We must push people forward biblically! Does it seem like the Lord’s not there when you turn around? We do not need the Lord to validate us. For we walk by faith and not by sight! Boom! And on that note – let us go off to minister! Even if we are sporting. . .

“GOLD-FLECKED FLIP-FLOPS!”

JOYFULLY IN JESUS,
LOVE, PHILIP