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Trinitarian Encounter

A friend of mine was diagnosed with cancer over a year ago and, though the cancer is gone, he has still been struggling with his health. When I spoke to he and his wife last week, things were not going well. I spoke to them again tonight, and he told me of a spiritual encounter he had over the weekend. Saturday night he awoke and went into his study. He sat in the chair there and said he felt as if he went into a trance of some kind. He could not explain exactly what it was, but he was in total peace. He had no thoughts other than occasional reminders of blessings that he had received. He said he felt God, but in the Holy Trinity – he was aware of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Again, he didn’t have words for exactly what that felt like. He said he had never felt anything like it before. Sunday morning he realized it was Trinity Sunday as celebrated in the Catholic Church. He started feeling physically better that day and has been on an upward trend since then. It was a story of a beautiful encounter with God in the still, quiet of the night. I am grateful he is feeling better.

I Found God today as a friend experienced Him in the Trinity.

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Love to Laugh

For the past several days, we have heard songs from the movie “Mary Poppins”. I think it started last week when my mom started singing, “I Love to Laugh” followed by Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha . . . Then when my dad stepped outside, he would sing, “Have you ever seen the grass so green, or a bluer sky . . .” So, we got out the movie and watched it tonight. I didn’t realize how long it was, and we probably stayed up too late, but everyone really enjoyed it. We laughed and sang along, just as anticipated.

I Found God today fulfilling my parents desires to watch an uplifting movie.

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Beatitudes Now

Today’s Gospel reading is the infamous Sermon on the Mount. As I read the words, I couldn’t help but notice how relevant they are in light of the recent protests. Now, I am not talking about the riots, vandalism, or looting, but of those standing up for what is true, good, right, just, and humane. Jesus gives clear direction as to how we should live our life:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward will be great in heaven.
Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

I Found God today in His relevant words of justice and peace.

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Lighting the Night

For some reason, just a few weeks ago I realized that a statue I have of Our Lady of Lourdes glows in the dark. I have had it for a number of years and it is on the dresser located parallel to my head when I lay down. When I first became aware of it, I had turned off my light and was just laying there looking into the dark. Then I spotted something illuminated out of the corner of my eye. It was one of those things that when I looked directly at it, I couldn’t see exactly what it was, so I had to look next to or around it. Then I picked it up and realized it was my statue. Now, when I turn my light off, I look for it, thank Mary, my guardian angel, and God for watching over me with their light. And so it was tonight.

I Found God today reminding myself that He is watching over me always.

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Funeral From Afar

A few months ago, my dad’s cousin passed away at 95 years of age. This happened at the beginning of the Covid-19 restrictions. Today, the family held a funeral for him and livestreamed it for others to participate. We were happy to be able to watch. There was a table set up at the front of the church that held a photo of him, memorabilia, an American flag, and his cremains. He was a woodworker and the priest pointed out that he had made his own urn, which was a beautiful wooden box. He also made some of the necklaces that the Eucharistic ministers wore in that church. The service was just as touching as it would be in person. His children reflected on his life of simplicity and generosity. He helped others and gave to others without making it known. Evidently, people would tell the children later what their father had done for them. He said they didn’t have a lot of money, but they did have a lot of fun. One of the siblings commented that she didn’t know how much money they did or did not have, but they had everything they needed and then some, and that was being truly rich. She said her dad was a teacher and always taught by being a part of the lesson. In these unusual times, he certainly was continuing that as the children had to figure out the best way to honor their father and others without having a large funeral. Just listening to the service was enlightening for me and I am grateful that we were able to be present.

I Found God today in a beautiful memorial for a wonderful man.

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New Pacemaker

Every 3 months for the past 5 years, my mom has used a special monitor to download her pacemaker information. The report goes to an office who contacts her cardiologist. Part of the data includes how long the life of the battery in the pacemaker has left. For the past year, it had been counting down the months. The cardiologist decided it was time to replace it and today was the day. According to the last instructions we had received, the hospital was not allowing anyone to stay with the patients. My sister arrived at the house bright and early this morning to stay with my dad while I took my mom. When we checked in and arrived on the floor, we were told that they had changed the rules and that 1 person could stay. I was so happy to hear that. The nurse’s name was Nenita – so close to my mom’s it was funny. I noticed she was wearing what appeared to be a miraculous medal. When I asked her about it, she told us the story of a miraculous healing she experienced. She had a large mass, but when it came time to do surgery, the mass was gone. She attributed it to all the prayers she and others had said. She wore the miraculous medal, one of St. Anthony, one of St. Jude, and a crucifix. She was a beautiful soul. The morning couldn’t have gone any better. They actually replace the pacemaker itself, not a battery. The cardiologist explained this was the least complicated surgery he performed. They actually got my mom in earlier than scheduled and the procedure itself last only about 45 minutes. They didn’t even use anesthesia. When my mom returned to the room, she said she didn’t feel a thing. Everyone was happy to hear that. She napped a bit, then ate breakfast like she hadn’t eaten for a week. Everything went very well and we even made it home in time for lunch. She is doing great. The technology and procedures make it pretty easy to do something that can seem pretty scary. The care and knowledge of the nurses and doctors made the worrisome surgery very non threatening.

I Found God today in my mom’s successful surgery.

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Plan Worked

Last week, my dad had a fairly large cancer spot removed from his arm. Despite the very ugly bruise, the wound healed very well. This morning he had the appointment to have the stitches taken out. My mom’s Parkinson’s exercise class was held online about the same time. I signed into that and got her all set up before we left. Yesterday, I ordered groceries to be picked up this morning as well. So, my dad and I went to the dermatologist and had his stitches removed, then we went to the grocery store and picked up the groceries I ordered, finally we drove through the pharmacy to pick up prescriptions, and we were home before my mom’s exercise class had even finished. It was quite a productive time for us all. I love it when a plan works out in real life the same way it does in my mind.

I Found God today in a best laid plan that actually worked out.

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Needed Message

I met with some of my prayer group tonight and as we were looking over the scripture readings for the upcoming Sunday’s Mass, one of the ladies pointed out the 2nd reading for that day. It was a much needed and pertinent message at this time:

2 COR 13:11-13
“Brothers and sisters, rejoice. Mend your ways, encourage one another,
agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the holy ones greet you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.”

The Gospel reading is John 3:16, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” How we all hope and pray that people will turn to Him for peace, justice, love, ultimately eternal life.

I Found God today in very timely and pertinent Words from God.

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Change of Scenery

It was a very warm day today and we have been going a little stir crazy, so I suggested a drive. We ended up in our favorite park. The last time we went there, we found a small handicapped parking lot off the beaten path and decided to go there. When we arrived, there was only 1 other car in the area. That was a good sign, so we got out and walked around a bit. We did pass a few people in our wandering, but everyone was respectful of keeping their distance. My mom and dad enjoyed the new and different view of the scenery taking the new path. It gave us all a lift.

I Found God today in a change of scenery.

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Welcomed Webinar

I was happy to be able to attend a webinar this morning focused on supporting caregivers. The speakers not only acknowledged the struggles of caregivers, especially during this pandemic, but offered tangible assistance. They presented different ways of making sure caregivers take care of themselves so they can take care of their loved ones. I had heard many of the suggestions before, but had forgotten. I was grateful to revisit those thoughts and hear new ones as well.

I Found God today being supported in care giving.