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Courageous Martyrs

Posted by eph21920 on May 6, 2019 in Bible, Death, Faith, Sacrifice, Saint

Tonight in my Bible class, we read through the books of Maccabees. It was an amazing, yet disturbing account of the oppression and martyrdom of the Jewish people. Those who failed to obey the laws of the land and chose God’s laws instead were tortured and died horrible deaths. Probably the most famous story out of this book is that of the woman with 7 sons. From the oldest to the youngest, the boys courageously refused to renounce God. The mother encouraged each of her son’s to be strong and reminded them that though they may lose their bodily life, their spirit would live on and they would be together again. Quite an act of bravery on her part as she watched the heinous torture and death of her children before it was her turn to endure the same fate. I thought about the current condition of our world now. People all over the globe are persecuted and/or killed for practicing their faith. I am in awe of those who stand strong in the face of those who would take their lives. And there are those who are killed simply by being in a place of worship. And yet, these accounts give me a stronger resolve and hope that I am able to stand firm against those things that would pull me away from God.

I Found God today in courageous martyrs.

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Amen to That

Posted by eph21920 on May 5, 2019 in Children, Joy

This morning in church, a couple sat in front of us with a baby and a little boy about 3 years old. At the beginning of Mass, the woman identified herself as the grandmother. She seemed in charge of the little boy while the man held and rocked the baby. The child was very interested in everything about church. The woman patiently answered his questions and showed him where Jesus was in the artwork and on the large crucifix. When it came time to respond, the little boy did the same best he could, even holding his hands the way his grandmother was. At one point he answered with a loud, “Amen!” He was too cute to watch.

I Found God today in an enthusiastic child.

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The Old Sewing Machine

Posted by eph21920 on May 3, 2019 in Answer, Family, Knowledge, Problem

The other day, my mom and dad spent quite some time getting my mom’s old sewing machine back up and running. My mother used to be quite the seamstress. She made all of our clothes when we were kids and made her’s as well. She even took new classes when they were available. The old machine worked for a bit, but then there was a problem with the needle. They had enough, so set the project aside for the time being. My mom got back at it today. She changed the needle and got it working again. This time, she was struggling trying to get the bobbin in place. She told me that using the machine was so automatic at one time. Now she had to think about what to do. My dad went in to see if he could help her out. She was explaining to him how she used to just hold it here and push like this – – the bobbin popped right in. I think some of the automatic kicked in.

I Found God today as my mom worked her old sewing machine.

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Mom Made It Too

Posted by eph21920 on May 2, 2019 in Birthday, Family, Life

Today was my mom’s 87th birthday. She and my dad laughed about how she “made it too” referring to my dad’s comment on his birthday. To celebrate, I started by making her favorite breakfast – which I actually do every morning, so it wasn’t really that special. In the afternoon, we went to the movie, “Dumbo”. She remembered seeing the original so many years ago and joked that she never thought she would be seeing that movie on her 87th birthday. The movie itself strayed quite far from the original, but we enjoyed going never the less. Then we went to dinner and back home for dessert. My mom thought we had enough cake for a while, so I made an ice cream dessert that she picked out of her cookbook. It was a good day to celebrate her.

I Found God today celebrating my mom.

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May Day Surprise

Posted by eph21920 on May 1, 2019 in Creation, Friends, Joy

The other day, we were talking about May Day with my mom’s friend. When she was young, she used to put together baskets of goodies and flowers and leave them on porches of friends as a surprise. I had never heard of that tradition. This morning I went to my exercise class. One of the ladies there brought in small pansy plants and small butterfly garden ornaments for everyone. We were all surprised. It started out the day – and the month – with a little good cheer.

I Found God today in a surprise of flowers.

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Helping the Homeless Hero

Posted by eph21920 on April 30, 2019 in Answer, Connected, Generosity, Homeless, Stranger, Struggles

The other day there was a terrible crash on the highway. I heard early on that a homeless man who was in the area sprang into action and started pulling people out of their cars before they caught on fire. He saved at least 3 people. I heard tonight that a news station started a fundraising effort for him. Many people have already donated and are trying to give the man a leg up. I thought that was pretty awesome.

I Found God today as people help a homeless hero.

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Diverse God

Posted by eph21920 on April 29, 2019 in Answer, Faith, Life

My Bible class reconvened after a 2 week Easter break. During that time, one young man was Baptized, Confirmed, and received his first Holy Communion as he entered into the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil. The people who attended commented on what a beautiful celebration it was. It made them really appreciate and rejoice in their Catholic faith. Another man was accepted into the diaconate program and will begin his 5 year formation in the fall. And one young woman said she went to Paris. She loves the Notre Dame cathedral and when she saw it had burned, she had to go see it. She showed us pictures of when she was there before the fire and a couple of pictures of what the outside looks like now. I thought about the extraordinary faith of these 3 people and the different ways in which that plays out in their lives. What a wonderful, diverse God we have.

I Found God today in the different ways faith is expressed.

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He Made It

Posted by eph21920 on April 28, 2019 in Birthday, Family, Fun, Life

Today was my dad’s 89th birthday. When I wished him happy birthday when he got up this morning, his response was, “I made it!” After church we went to the symphony and heard Beethoven. He had been wanting to go and it happened to land on his birthday so that worked well. It was a small venue and we had good seats. It felt like we were right next to the orchestra. I could see the pianists hands and fingers as they flew up and down the piano keys. The concert was beautiful and my dad loved it. He didn’t want to make any decision on other plans and said I should surprise him. So after the concert we went to dinner and my son met us there. Then at home, the neighbors came over for cake. It was a busy but enjoyable day. I was also happy that my dad “made it” to celebrate one more year.

I Found God today celebrating my dad’s birthday.

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Have Your Cake

Posted by eph21920 on April 27, 2019 in Answer, Birthday, Family, Food

Our season of celebrations actually started on Good Friday this year with my parents’ 67th wedding anniversary. Since it was on Good Friday, we decided to celebrate on Easter Sunday instead with German cuisine. I made a black forest cake that I tried once before and was a little disappointing. I tweaked the recipe a little and this time it was fantastic. A few days before, we received 2 fresh pineapples from the organic fruit subscription that my mom gets every month from my brother. Just as we finished the black forest cake, my brother and I decided we needed to make a fresh pineapple upside down cake. I had to tweak the recipe a bit and it turned out amazing. Tomorrow is my dad’s birthday and his favorite is angel food cake. My mom used to make it for him all the time, but was unable to get it to rise properly in the high altitude. I tried a couple of times as well, but had the same issue, so we had kind of gave up on it. But, we were almost out of pineapple upside down cake and my dad requested angel food cake, so I was determined to make it work. I tweaked the old tried and true recipe, used some directions from another recipe, and consulted my mom along the way. The cake came out tall and firm. It was incredible. I can’t wait to see what next week brings.

I Found God today in the ability to make delicious food.

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Making Room

Posted by eph21920 on April 26, 2019 in Generosity, Grateful, Stranger

It was a beautiful day outside, so my mom and I took a walk. My mom always uses her walker outside so she has more stability. Today we went in a different direction from the way we usually go. As we meandered along, I noticed 2 men sitting outside on the porch a few houses away. One of them went out to the street and moved the large trash cans that were sitting on the curb. When we reached them we said hello and one of them made a joke about having a radar gun to measure our “fast” pace. The other asked if we had enough room to get by the truck that was parked in the driveway. I thanked him and said we did. I then realized that they saw us coming and had moved the trash cans so they wouldn’t be in our way. Simple, but thoughtful and friendly.

I Found God today in a simple, but thoughtful act of kindness.

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