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Don’t Miss Him

Posted by eph21920 on July 24, 2025 in Answer, Bible, Connected, Faith, Jesus, Present

I found today’s Mass scripture readings very thought provoking. In the first reading from the book of Exodus, Moses led the Israelites to Mount Sanai to meet God. God’s arrival was marked with, “peals of thunder and lightning, and a heavy cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast.” Naturally all the people were frightened, but Moses led them out of the camp to see the sight. Then Moses alone spoke to God while the rest of the people couldn’t hear the conversation due to the loud noises. After this, Moses received the 10 Commandments. Interestingly, the people had already lost their fear of God and were trying to do things their own way. The second scripture reading was from the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus answers the disciples who were questioning him as to why he spoke in parables. He said that the people, “look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.” I wondered if I was at the base of a flaming, shaking mountain, would I hear God’s voice, or would I be too afraid? When I am reminded of what Jesus taught, am I open to listening? When I have an opportunity to act in a way that God wants me to, do I take the action? Do I really listen to what God is telling me and do I see the world as God does? I was left with many questions to think about. I do feel that writing this blog does help me to see things from a spiritual perspective as I ponder how I found God in the day. These scriptures reminded me that God is present – though not always in flames and earthquakes. It is up to us to see Him, find Him, and listen to His promptings. I know that when I am able to do so, I find love and peace.

I Found God today reminded of how easy it is to miss Him.

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Grandmothers On Her Mind

Posted by eph21920 on July 23, 2025 in Children, Connected, Death, Family

The other day I realized that my granddaughter only has a few weeks left of school. We chose 1 fun summer thing to do each week before school begins. So today I took my daughter-in-law and granddaughter to the zoo. When I picked them up, my granddaughter grabbed the white embroidered purse that used to belong to my mother. We had given it to her quite some time ago. She said she just had to have it with her today. Perhaps she remembered that the zoo was one of my mom’s favorite places to go. In the car, she told me that she was playing on a computer game yesterday and the character she chose to use was a cardinal. Her mother has a connection with cardinals as they remind her of her mother who passed away 2 years ago. My granddaughter chose the cardinal as it reminded her of her grandmother. However, she didn’t realize that yesterday was her grandmother’s birthday. She is a very thoughtful and intuitive little girl with a spiritual connection.

I Found God today in my granddaughter’s connections.

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Seasons of Life

Posted by eph21920 on July 22, 2025 in Death, Friends, Grateful, Life, Present

Today was the annual picnic for the housing complex I live in. I surprised myself as to how many people I knew and could visit with. I even remembered some names and some conversations that I had with people in the past. Some of the residents knew my parents and I enjoyed the stories they shared about them. I visited with people in the food line and just walking around. I sat with one of the ladies that I had met very early when I moved in. Last time we chatted, she told my about her tragically losing close members of her family – including a grandson. When we talked today, I told her about my son’s upcoming wedding. She said that her granddaughter – who is also the twin of the grandson who died – is getting married in a few weeks. She talked about the “seasons of life” and how important it is to live in them, no matter if they are sad or joyful. I appreciated her wisdom.

I Found God today in friends and conversations about the seasons of life.

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God’s Care

Posted by eph21920 on July 21, 2025 in Answer, Faith, Friends, Grateful, Healing, Prayer, Struggles

Today I was talking with some friends about being persistent in prayer. People were talking about how God answers their prayers, even when it isn’t exactly the way you want it sometimes. One older gentleman said that there have been plenty of times when he has prayed for something specific and God’s answer has been “No”. But he got choked up when he said he knew God heard one particular prayer for sure. It was when his wife was in the hospital and they didn’t know if she would survive. He begged God to heal her and that is what God did. He told of another time when he was very sick and his family didn’t think he was going to make it. He told God that if he died, God was going to have to take care of his wife. The next day the man started recovering. That was both moving and humorous. Both stories were beautiful examples of how God can show up in a big way to answer specific prayers.

I Found God today in stories of answered prayers.

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Finally 18

Posted by eph21920 on July 20, 2025 in Birthday, Family, Joy

Today my grandson turned 18 years old. I feel like I have been celebrating him for months already. Probably because I have. We started by celebrating his high school graduation. Then we were on the road trip together for a month. During the trip, I bought him assorted things and would follow it up with, “Happy Birthday”! When we would do something particularly special, or eat something wonderful, I would say, “Happy Birthday”! It was fun and joyful to celebrate the actual day today. All the family came over for pizza and cake. My grandson was a good sport and wore the celebratory accessories that have become a tradition – a tiny sombrero, sunglasses and sash. I am loving being able to see him grow into a young adult and feel so blessed to have this time with him. I know God has a wonderful plan for him and will always pray that he finds God and follows him too.

I Found God today celebrating my grandson’s birthday.

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Singing in Heaven

Posted by eph21920 on July 19, 2025 in Death, Family, Music

When my dad was alive, he and my brother worked hard to digitize the family cassette tapes and CD’s. They included family updates with us kids talking, as well as my mom playing the piano and singing. We found a box of cassette tapes at the house, so my brother went through them today to make sure we had them saved. He would play a little bit of each selection. One of them was my mother singing Ave Maria in a church. In this particular recording, she hit a certain note and held it. The resonation broke one of the glass votive candle holders. We were always amazed by that. I commented that now she is singing in Heaven. My brother agreed and added that the angels are amazed now also. I can only imagine how beautiful her perfect voice is now.

I Found God today imagining my mom singing in Heaven.

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God’s Rock Formation

Posted by eph21920 on July 18, 2025 in Creation, Family, Happiness, Joy, Life

My brother and his dog have been here for several days. His dog was having some stomach problems, which took a couple of days to resolve. She has had more energy and seems to be feeling better now. So, today we decided to enjoy the outdoors. It had been a long time since my brother had gone hiking at the most beautiful park in the city, so that’s where we went. While we were driving slowly through, at one point I saw something in the woods next to the car. It was a deer running about the same speed as the car. It wasn’t there long, but it was fun. After we parked, we took the trail that led to the 2 impressive towering rocks that have a hole between them. When you stand in the right spot, you can see the mountain in the hole. My brother brought his camera and took some photos. I took pictures of him taking pictures. When I was reading a description of this particular spot, it said that it was not man made – God had placed the rocks and the hole for us to enjoy. I agreed. And so did my brother. He said God is always present there.

I Found God today in beautiful scenery and nature.

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Gin Rummy

Posted by eph21920 on July 17, 2025 in Friends, Grateful, Music, Past, Present, Relationship

A while ago, our friend who would come and play piano with my mom fell and broke her hip. Thankfully, she is all healed up now. While she was recovering, her daughter stayed with her. When I visited during that time, I was talking with the 2 of them about keeping busy. They told me that they had an ongoing gin rummy game. Whenever they would get together, they would play. And they kept a running score. They would just pick up where they left off. We decided it would be fun for her to teach me how to play the card game. I went over to her house today since I hadn’t seen her in a while. I told her all about my vacation. She told me all about the news and church happenings. She is as alert as ever, even though she’ll be 90 on her next birthday. Then she got out the cards and taught me the house rules of gin rummy. We played several hands just for fun and agreed to start keeping score the next time we get together. It was such a good time and I feel blessed to be able to continue this friendship.

I Found God today in a continued friendship.

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Out of the Pit

Posted by eph21920 on July 16, 2025 in Answer, Connected, Faith, Friends, Grateful, Grief, Happiness, Healing, Hope, Past, Struggles

Much of today’s devotion from “Jesus Calling” really resonated with me. It talked about being in a state of depression and in the darkness. I feel like I have felt that way for quite some time until that past few months. The reflection is from Jesus’ standpoint as He says,

“Your only hope is to look up and see the Light of My Presence shining down on you. Though the Light looks dim from your perspective, deep in the pit, those rays of hope can reach you at any depth. … I will pull you out into the Light again.”

That describes exactly how I felt. I seemed to be in a deep, dark pit of despair, worry, fear, and anxiety. Eventually I noticed I could see a little light. As I continued to move toward that light, I continued to feel better, happier, more alive, hopeful and peaceful. I am grateful for all the people who helped me, extending Jesus’ hand to draw me out of that hole. I can very much empathize with those who are in the pit, pray for them, and help when and how I can.

I Found God today realizing how He has pulled me out of the pit.

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Pet Detected

Posted by eph21920 on July 15, 2025 in Creation, Family, Joy

A while ago we put some cameras at the cabin to keep an eye on the place. I have always hoped to see some wildlife and get excited when I see a deer or bunny. Today I received the notification “Pet Detected”. Since my brother was there with his dog, I figured it was them, but I took a look. It was a bear. A little brown bear had gone across the driveway behind my brother’s truck and went up the hill. It was so exciting. I called my brother and told him. But by the time he went out to look, the bear was gone. We knew they were in the area as we have found their scat. So to finally catch one on the camera was so exciting. I shared the video with the family so we could all enjoy the sighting.

I Found God today seeing a bear out in nature.

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