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His Anointing

Posted by eph21920 on April 20, 2019 in Friends, Generosity, Intimacy, Life, Sick

A couple weeks ago, a friend found out he has an aggressive type of cancer. Though he’s almost 80 years old, he would drive to his condo in the mountains and go skiing all during the winter. He felt great, but had some minor pains that he took to be kidney stones. So, he and his wife were quite surprised to learn that he has cancer. He will be having major surgery on Monday and checking into the hospital tomorrow. In preparation, this morning, he received the Anointing of the Sick and invited people to come. I and several others gathered at the church for the occasion, including of course the pastor and two deacons as well. We all huddled around the Baptismal font and prayed for my friend while he was anointed with the oil. It was a short, intimate, beautiful Sacrament to be a part of. I thought it was wonderful that the couple invited and encouraged people to be involved in their struggles and in their faith.

I Found God today praying with caring people.

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Bittersweet

Posted by eph21920 on April 19, 2019 in Children, Faith, Family, Forgiveness, Grateful, Jesus, Lent, Life, Love, Marriage

My parents celebrated their 67th wedding anniversary today. They said several times that they couldn’t believe how much time has gone by and that they are still here to celebrate. It just happened to also be Good Friday. The weather outside was just about perfect, so we decided to pack a picnic lunch and head over to the park. One park near the house was just opened last year. It has sports playing fields, covered or open picnic tables, wide walking paths, assorted playgrounds for the kids, and even a small water spray area that was not yet turned on. As we ate our lunch, we watched all the commotion of busy children. My dad clapped for the little girl doing cartwheels, so she thanked him and did some more. Everyone was happy to be outside enjoying the beautiful day. After the park, we went to the Stations of the Cross at the church. The prayers were somber, yet powerful as we remembered how Jesus took our sins upon Himself to death on the cross. And in exchange, He asks us to allow Him to love us. I thought of the scene in the movie “The Passion” where Jesus looked at His mother and said, “See, I make all things new.” The statement seemed very relevant today. It was indeed a Good Friday.

I Found God today in celebrating my parents on Good Friday.

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Holy Thursday Experiences

Posted by eph21920 on April 18, 2019 in Faith, Family, Grateful, Jesus, Lent, Past, Youth

Holy Thursday Mass tonight was beautiful. It was pretty traditional with chanting and moving hymns. As I watched the priest wash the feet of 12 people, I remembered when I had my feet washed and what an incredible moment that was. I remembered inviting some youth to have their feet washed and watching their reactions. And I remembered when my son was an altar server and the holy moments he shared in during the Triduum. I’m feeling pretty blessed for these experiences.

I Found God today experiencing Holy Thursday.

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Weight Lifted

Posted by eph21920 on April 17, 2019 in Family, Happiness, Life

When my mom got up this morning, she said she was feeling really good – better than she has in a few months. She said she felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off of her. When my dad got up he exclaimed that it was a beautiful day, and a beautiful life. It was an upbeat day for my parents and good to see them that way.

I Found God today in a positive day.

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Excellent Health News

Posted by eph21920 on April 16, 2019 in Answer, Doctor, Faith, Family, Grateful, Healing, Life, Prayer

A while ago, during my dad’s unexpected hospital visit one of the tests discovered a tumor on my dad’s pancreas. Since then, we have been praying to Our Lady of Lourdes and blessing ourselves with holy water. My dad has been putting his share on his stomach where the pancreas is located. He has had several doctor’s appointments and tests since then. There have been many conversations about what the next best step would be and many decisions to make. Since he has no symptoms at all and don’t want to make things worse, we have been taking it slow. My dad had a very important scan yesterday early in the morning in the city about an hour and a half away. We were very happy that is was a relatively uneventful and easy procedure. Today was the follow up with the doctor. We found out that it is the best case scenario – other than the tumor completely disappearing which is what my dad was praying for. The tumor is not an aggressive type of cancer. He will have scans every 6 months or so to see if there is any progression. The doctor said the cancer may just sit there and not cause any problems for weeks, months, years, or even a decade. My dad told her he was going to go home and live his life. And maybe take a cruise. She thought that was an excellent idea. Tonight, we said a thanksgiving prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.

I Found God today in very good news about my dad’s health.

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Grace Despite Imperfections

Posted by eph21920 on April 14, 2019 in Answer, Faith, Grace, Grateful

For the past couple of days, I have been struggling with my own humanity, imperfections, negative thoughts, and sinful tendencies. However, in that, I have seen and felt God’s grace. For that, I am incredibly grateful.

I Found God today in God’s grace despite my imperfect humanity.

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Powerful Service

Posted by eph21920 on April 11, 2019 in Answer, Lent, Service, Stranger

I watched a reflection today from Dynamic Catholic that included a story about how one person chose to serve a stranger in jail due to a chance phone call. It was an interesting and powerful story, so I would like to share it here. The reflection is first followed by the story.

I Found God today in a witness of powerful service.

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The Winner

Posted by eph21920 on April 10, 2019 in Family, Fun

I took my mom to her exercise class today and was reminded of her amazing accomplishment at Monday’s class. For one of the activities, there was a target drawn on the giant mirror and the participants threw the large suction cup darts. My mom threw one with her right hand and it was far off. She is actually left handed, so she switched hands. The first one she threw landed in the bulls-eye area. She was right on target after that. So much so, that she got the highest score of the whole class. Everyone was very proud of her and made a big fuss. She was the big winner.

I Found God today in my mom’s accomplishment.

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Not Failing Lent

Posted by eph21920 on April 9, 2019 in Answer, Faith, Humility, Lent, Prayer

I have been doing my best to do Lent well. I always have good intentions at the beginning and am determined to pray and fast without fail. Unfortunately,  I have not been as perfect as my intentions would have me to be. A particular meditation video that I watched this morning really hit my heart. It said to take heart and not give up. Even if you have not been perfect and have felt like you have “failed”, just start again. Lent is about humility. I think I have done better at that anyways. Instead of throwing in the towel when I haven’t been exactly on track, I have been able to start again the next day. For me, it’s better to take one day at a time. The words from the meditation were very helpful and encouraging.

I Found God today in encouraging words not to give up.

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Choose Wisely

Posted by eph21920 on April 8, 2019 in Answer, Death, Faith, Life

Tonight in my Bible class, we studied the fall of the kingdoms of Judah and Israel as told in the second book of Kings. It was a ruthless story of conquest, murder, and idolatry. The bottom line is that when the people followed God, He took care of them. But when they blatantly turned away from Him, refusing to obey, and leading lives of abomination, they eventually were captured and exiled from their land. However, in the midst of this, there were kings who repented of their evil ways and God blessed them. We looked back in Deuteronomy chapter 30 in which God gave Israel a choice – life or death. Life and blessings are promised to those who obey God. Israel, like us, always have the choice. And God will always follow through. That is very good news.

I Found God today in the promises He keeps.

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