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Found the Music

Posted by eph21920 on October 12, 2018 in Answer, Family, Music

My parents used to buy season tickets to the Philharmonic symphony, but the past couple of years they did not due to health issues and missing more than they attended. However, this year, they decided to get them again. In preparation, my mom reviewed the program for this upcoming weekend. She knew that she had some of the music on CD or cassette tape or something, so she went on a hunt to find them. My dad joined in and located the list he made on his computer of all the music they own. They did indeed find the music they were looking for and listened to it. It has been a long time since they delved into their hundreds of CD’s and tapes, so to find what they wanted was quite an accomplishment. It was beautiful to hear.

I Found God today in well found music.

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Friend Feeling Better

Posted by eph21920 on October 10, 2018 in Answer, Friends, Sick

A woman I know has been on my mind and in my prayers. I saw her two weeks ago and she was having some medical issues. I could tell in her demeanor that she wasn’t feeling well and that she was worried. I saw her again tonight and she was looking much better. She said she received some answers from the doctor and started taking a medication that is helping. The issue is not gone, but she now knows what it is and can get some treatment. It was good to see her feeling so much better.

I Found God today in a woman feeling better.

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Push Past Fear

Posted by eph21920 on October 9, 2018 in Answer, Family, Fun, Joy, Life, Opportunity

My son traveled to England for business a couple of weeks ago and was able to visit London while he was there. He came over tonight and told us all about it. He did his best to pack in as many sites as he could. After one particularly busy day, he was resting in his room trying to decide what to do that night. He came upon an opportunity to do a pub crawl and experience some of the night life. But he was by himself and that would really be going outside of his comfort zone. As he was going through videos and such, he came across the topic of pushing past fear and living life. It included a quote by Will Smith, “God placed the best things on the other side of terror, on the other side of fear are the best things in life.” Immediately he signed up for the crawl while he was feeling courageous. That night, he met people from all over the world and had a wonderful time. He even met up with some of them the next day. He said participating in the crawl was the best decision he made while he was in London. This may be a small example of what is possible when we don’t allow fear to hold us back, but it is something my son certainly won’t forget.

I Found God today in a reminder to push through fear to experience life.

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Stranger’s Cross

Posted by eph21920 on October 8, 2018 in Answer, Faith, Stranger

Tonight a young woman shared a story of a very meaningful encounter. When she was in high school, she went through a devastating break up with her boyfriend. It left her sad and depressed for months. During that time, she was on the city bus and just looking out the window. A man came and sat down next to her. He gently touched her shoulder and told her everything would be alright. He then took off the necklace he was wearing and placed it over her head. Then he was gone. She gave him no reply or response. After a while, she looked down and realized that the man had placed a cross around her neck. She now has it in a special place so when she sees it, she remembers the compassion of the stranger and his words that everything will be OK.

I Found God today in a young woman’s story of her God encounter.

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Not the D Word

Posted by eph21920 on October 7, 2018 in Faith, Grateful, Marriage, Priest, Relationship

I looked through the Mass readings early this morning and was glad I did. The Gospel scripture was about divorce. The people asked Jesus if it was OK to get a divorce as Moses said it was. Jesus answered that Moses gave that rule due to the hard hearts of the people. Jesus then goes on to condemn divorce. Being a divorced person, this reading always cuts to my heart. I have heard many sermons on the topic and some of them have been very insensitive, so I did my best to prepare myself before Mass. The priest started his homily by talking about his own vocation and how he came to be a priest. From there, he discussed the vocation of marriage and what a wonderful Sacrament it is. He said that a husband and wife relationship mirrors the image of God in the Trinity. The love of the two people is so strong, that they are able to create another. It was deep, but beautiful. His talk was focused on the loving relationship. He never even said the “D” word at all. I was grateful, relieved and uplifted.

I Found God today in thoughtful words of love and marriage.

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Fall Oasis

Posted by eph21920 on October 6, 2018 in Creation, Family, New

We headed home today after spending a few days at the cabin. The fall colors up there were breathtaking. The gold and orange leaves “quaked” in the breeze as the sunlight shone through them. They were stunning against the deep blue sky. Even though it was cool, cloudy, and foggy this morning, it only added to the beauty as the leaves glowed through the shroud. It was the first year I tried taking pictures with the camera my dad gave me last year for my birthday. I spent the majority of the time trying to capture the vibrant scene in photographs. Of course, try as I might, it is very difficult to replicate the awesome beauty of nature in a photo. But my dad gave constructive critiques as I went along and shared ideas and different ways to look through the lens. I tried them out and could see a progression with each new excursion. When we left, we took in as much as we could. But we were surprised that the area of the cabin was really the most beautiful. It was like a little oasis and we felt pretty special to be in the middle of it.

I Found God today in the beauty of nature and trying to capture it.

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Quick Decision, Lifelong Blessing

Posted by eph21920 on October 5, 2018 in Answer, Connected, Family, Friends, Grateful, Life, Opportunity

We spent some time at the cabin today and visited with a friend of my parents who is the closest neighbor. He started building his house a couple of years after my dad started building and they have known for about 40 years. He told the story of how he came to purchase the land. He and his family lived in New York at the time and took several weeks during the summer to do some camping. This particular year, they were in the area looking for a friend’s construction site. They happened across a realtor who knew their friend and took them up to see the place. The realtor put them up in a cabin for the night with the understanding that he would show them some property the next day. He left them with a map of the region. They didn’t really want to spend time looking at property, but they did very much enjoy the cabin. As they reviewed the map, they found one site that would be desirable to them. They figured it would already be sold and they could go on their merry way. The next day, they met with the realtor who showed them the one piece of land they picked out. The lot was not sold and they fell in love with it. They made the deal right then and there. It was a spur of the moment purchase for sure. My parents and the couple became good friends right away. Of all the instances that could have happened and all the people who might have purchased the land, the friendship of this family has been such a blessing.

I Found God today in a story of an unexpected decision that resulted in a lifelong friendship.

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Better Sleep

Posted by eph21920 on October 4, 2018 in Answer, Family, Life, Love, Marriage, Problem

My mom has been getting up at a new earlier time recently. This morning she said she has been sleeping much better lately. Ever since she had cataract surgery, she has been seeing huge halos around lights, especially at night. Evidently, when she would wake up during the night, she saw the large red numbers from the alarm clock which was surrounded by a bright red glow. She talked to my dad about it a couple of weeks ago, so he thoughtfully moved the alarm clock to a different place where only he can see it. I guess it made a difference. Now when she wakes up during the night, there isn’t a large glowing object staring at her. What’s more, she doesn’t know what time it is so there isn’t any of that lying awake and checking the clock every 10 minutes. When she gets up at her new earlier time, she feels well rested and ready to begin her day.

I Found God today as my mom is getting better sleep.

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Made For More

Posted by eph21920 on October 3, 2018 in Answer, Creation, Faith, Intimacy, Life, Love, Marriage

Tonight I went to an interesting and powerful event called “Made For More” led by Christopher West. The presentation started with a somewhat disturbing animated video of people on their cell phones not paying any attention to one another, dehumanizing horrific events, and finally following each other as they walk off a cliff. The point was that we “look” but do not “see”. We look at people in certain ways, but often don’t see them as the irreplaceable, unique, unrepeatable individual that they are. The speaker talked about how each one of us is a product of our parents, and their parents before them, and their parents before them, etc. If one other sperm reached the egg, we as an individual would not exist. We have the ability to effect those around us in the way only we can. And each of us has a yearning desire to be seen and known by another. Too often, we look or are looked at as a means to make another “happy”. When one no longer makes another “happy”, they dispense with them and move along. Of course, this leads to a tremendous amount of pain and agony, which can lead to people reacting or acting out in ways that keep the cycle going. We were made for more. In a successful marriage, each partner is open with one another, sees one another, knows them, and loves them for who they truly are. God, who created us, knows us more intimately than anyone else can. Even the most successful relationship here on earth gives us a small taste of the relationship that is possible with God. The presentation went even deeper after that and I really am pondering the whole thing. I’m glad I was able to go, to listen, and to come away with some new insight.

I Found God today in a reminder of the amazing intimate love God has to offer.

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Prayer Intentions

Posted by eph21920 on October 2, 2018 in Answer, Faith, Family, Prayer

The other day my mom received a card in the mail from the church that they go to when they are at the cabin in the mountains. The card was from a prayer group. It said that the group would prayer especially for my mom, her family, and her intentions on a specific day. That day was actually yesterday, but I wanted to share the story today. At breakfast, we talked about what intentions we should have since they were getting additional, surely powerful prayers. My parents thought of the basics – that my mom would have a good exercise class and help for my dad to get the repair work in order at the cabin. Then we decided maybe we should think of even bigger requests – since He is a big God after all. So, we expanded the intentions to friends, family, and those we meet. It was a good day knowing that other people were spending time just praying for us.

I Found God today in a prayer group.

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