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The Transfiguration

Posted by eph21920 on August 6, 2026 in Bible, Faith, Jesus, Life, Plan

I woke up too early this morning, so I rolled over, grabbed my rosary, and put on my rosary app to pray. Thursday is the Luminous Mysteries and the 4th one is the Transfiguration. For whatever reason, this is one of my favorite Bible stories. I remember the picture in my old Children’s Bible of Jesus as dazzling white as a drawing can be, standing alongside of Moses and Abraham. The apostles appear stunned. I always imagine what it would be like to see such a sight and to hear God’s voice booming from a cloud, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to Him.” I think I would be stunned too. Even when I imagine it, I get a little overwhelmed. I actually finished the whole rosary, so I put on the reflection of the Gospel of the day. I was surprised when I heard that it was the Feast of the Transfiguration. I listened to the scripture and the reflection, which was pretty powerful. Jeff Cavins started by talking about the fact that only 3 apostles were chosen to witness such a scene. Perhaps the others felt left out. He reminded us that just because Jesus chose certain people to accompany Him to the top of Mt. Tabor, doesn’t mean that He loved them more than the others. And so it is for us. We should not feel left out or lesser than another if they get more attention than us, or if they are taking part in something that we are not. God loves you and me the same – abundantly and forever. We each have our own life to live, our own path to follow using the gifts that God has given us. He will guide us along that path and will always be with us. It is our part to Listen to Him, discern where He is leading us, and trust as we walk along with Him. It worked out that I was able to go to Mass today as well, so that was an extra blessing for me. I heard the scripture again, and again imagined myself in that place. It is just such a spiritual encounter to me.

I Found God today pondering the story of the Transfiguration.

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The Motor Home

Posted by eph21920 on August 5, 2026 in Family, Friends, Life, Past, Relationship, Travel

I was visiting with an elderly couple today and they were reminiscing about when their 4 boys were younger. When they only had 2 boys and 1 on the way, they purchased a motor home. It was, of course, an old style with a small section that went over the cab. The boys would take turns riding in that space and watching out the window. When some of them would be aggravating each other, there was room for them to spread out and separate, to help solve the issue. They said it was expensive for them at the time, but it was well worth it. It was an investment in their family. They could just pack everyone in and go, spending a lot of good quality time together. The couple made monetary sacrifices at the time to purchase the motor home, but said it was absolutely worth the investment in their family.

I Found God today in a couple who made sacrifices to nurture their family relationships.

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Such Strength

Posted by eph21920 on August 4, 2026 in Answer, Friends, Generosity, Grateful, Life, Struggles

I have had a particular friend on my mind recently. Last I talked to her she was in the hospital and I wondered how she was doing. So, I gave her a call today. I was happy to hear that she was back at home recovering. She said she was a little frustrated as it was taking her a long time to get her strength back. Honestly, she is one of the toughest people I know. I don’t even know how many times she has been in the hospital and she comes back just as strong every time. When I asked about everyone there, she told me about a friend of hers who she has been helping to care for. Unfortunately, when she was in the hospital and rehab for 5 weeks, her friend really started to decline. My friend said she has to get better so she can help her friend more. She is truly a selfless woman. It was so good to talk to her and catch up. I always leave inspired after talking with her.

I Found God today in a strong woman.

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Response to Fear

Posted by eph21920 on August 3, 2026 in Answer, Bible, Faith, Friends, Jesus, Life, Struggles, Trust

I met with my prayer group today and we discussed the scripture Matthew 14:22-33. The most discussed topic was fear. A couple of statements that people shared really stood out to me:

Fear weakens trust.

Fear leads to misinterpreting God’s plans.

I thought about these words a lot and how true they are. When I am afraid, it is mostly fear of the unknown result of a particular circumstance. Then I want to try to control the situation instead of trusting God. Also, when I allow fear to take over my mind, I can’t think clearly. It is easy for me to miss what God is doing in the moment and what He might have planned for the future. Of course, it would be nice to just stop being afraid and trust Jesus. In this scripture, Peter initially is ready to walk on the water towards Jesus, knowing and trusting that He will take care of things. However, as soon as Peter takes his eyes off Jesus, he starts flailing. When he calls back out, “Lord, save me!” Jesus is right there, extending His hand, pulling Peter up out of the depths. It is a great story and beautiful image. I pray that I can trust God more, instead of reacting to my own fears and doubts.

I Found God today in His response to fear.

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Living His Dream

Posted by eph21920 on August 2, 2026 in Answer, Car, Family, Grateful, Happiness, Life, Opportunity

My grandson texted me yesterday saying that I would never guess what he would be doing last night. I made a lot of random guesses that were pretty funny and saved the best for last. He moved almost a year ago to chase his dream of working with race cars. He got a job with a team and has been promoted and doing very well. My last guess was the correct one – driving a race car. A friend of his offered to let him rent his old crown vic stock car and drive it in a small race. Of course, my grandson was ecstatic. Some of the people he works with even pitched in to make it happen. He called on his way to the race track and told me that the owner of the car was hauling it out and would spot and coach him. I got a few videos and updates during the night. The last message was a photo of him outside the car announcing that he won 2nd place. I thought that was pretty amazing for his first time behind the wheel. I told him I was so grateful that he shared this event with me and how joyful it is for me to see him make his dreams a reality. He replied, “It’s super exciting living it and having it be a normal part of my life. Especially after wanting to do what I’m doing for so long before this. It’s a crazy cool feeling I wish everyone could experience.” I was again impressed at his heartfelt, thoughtful comments.

I Found God today seeing my grandson live his dream and appreciating it.

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Winning Gold

Posted by eph21920 on August 1, 2026 in Friends, Joy, Life, Relationship, Sports

I was talking with an elderly gentleman today in his 90’s. He has trouble with his eyes and they always look red and irritated. I always wonder how much it effects his vision. I was actually driving behind him for a little bit and he seemed to do just fine. He told me about a race that he ran in the state Senior Games. He won the gold for his level and was invited to participate in the national competition. He was very excited to share the news. For the national competition, he has friends who live in the area and have already planned how to support him so he can go. I was very inspired by the way he didn’t allow his physical struggles to interfere with his passion for life.

I Found God today in an inspirational person.

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Swoop

Posted by eph21920 on July 31, 2026 in Friends, Fun, Grateful, Laughter

My neighbor invited us over to play cards tonight and my brother and I were happy to join in. Her brother and his wife were visiting, so with her husband there were 6 of us. We learned a new game called swoop. It wasn’t too difficult, but still required an amount of strategy. I had never met the couple from out of town, but we all just seemed to click. It was a night of fun, thought as I learned a new game, and laughter. I am very blessed to have wonderful neighbors.

I Found God today enjoying the evening with friends.

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Getting Bigger

Posted by eph21920 on July 30, 2026 in Baby, Faith, Family, Grateful, Life, Struggles

My son and daughter in law have been going to the doctor twice a week to have ultrasound checks on their baby. She has been very tiny for a long time and the doctor doesn’t really know why. She was in the 1 percentile for size, which is why they started monitoring her so often. They do developmental testing and such as well, and the baby is passing all of those. They take measurements every now and again to estimate how physically big she is. We have all been praying hard for the baby and for my son and his wife not to worry too much. We have put Lourdes holy water on mom’s belly a couple of times and she has received priestly blessings. I talked to my son and his wife today after their appointment. They were excited to tell me that the baby had a good growth spurt and is now estimated to be in the 8 percentile. That is still small, but it is a big gain from where she was. Everyone was grateful and encouraged by the good news.

I Found God today in my newest granddaughter’s growth spurt.

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Days God Gave

Posted by eph21920 on July 29, 2026 in Answer, Family, Life, Rest

I had some weird dreams last night. One of them was about packing books. There were people at the house moving things out and they were waiting for me to get the books packed, which was never ending. I would wake up and remember that I didn’t need to pack anything right now. Then I would go back to sleep and repeat the cycle. When I finally woke up in the morning, I was exhausted and had a headache. I felt like I had actually packed books all night long. I got myself moving and took a couple Tylenol. Part of me just wanted to go back to bed. But, one thing I have been aware of is that my life here is pretty short – and getting shorter. I am trying to live each day to the fullest, doing things that are meaningful. At the same time, I’m trying to listen to my body and take care of it. It’s a balance. Later in the day, I heard a song that reflected my feelings called, “Days God Gave“. Some of the lyrics are:


Hold on to these moments
They’re flying by so fast
Take the time with the ones you love
Like a chance you can’t get back
Make a million memories
So when you’re old and gray
All the faces in those photographs
Smile back at you and say
You didn’t let the days God gave you get away

So, today I got some groceries, cooked a bit, got more things out of the house, and spent some time with my brother just doing things. It was a good day. And I am looking forward to going to bed – hopefully for a more restful sleep.

I Found God today spending the day well, even though I didn’t really feel like it.

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Leaking Windows

Posted by eph21920 on July 28, 2026 in Friends, Grateful, Opportunity, Struggles

I was at an elderly couple’s house today helping them out when a thunderstorm rolled through. It has been such a long time since they have had any rain in their area, and we were wondering if it would actually happen. We could see the dark clouds coming closer and closer and hear the thunder drawing near. Finally, it started sprinkling. Then, bigger raindrops came down. Soon there was a torrential downpour. As the wife and I watched it pour outside the kitchen window, she noticed that on one side it looked like a waterfall as the water streamed down the outside of the window. I went over for a closer look and found that the floor was damp. I then realized that there was water coming in the window and the one directly above it. She called to her husband while I grabbed some towels. Both windowsills were full of water. As I sopped it up, the husband looked at the downspout outside under the windows and wondered if anything was coming out of it. When the rain slowed down, I went out to take a look. The downspout was completely clogged and vented into the ground. I got it all cleaned out and repositioned. A little while later, the second wave hit of heavy rain hit. The downspout was working a little better, but there was still rain leaking in the windows. We got bigger towels and I did the best I could to get everything situated before it was time for me to leave. Luckily, their son lives next door and they would be able to have him take a look when he returned from work. I was happy I was there to discover the problem and do what I could to help.

I Found God today being in the right place at the right time to be helpful.

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