Today at my exercise class, one of the ladies talked about her grandmother who lived to 92 years old. One evening when the woman was visiting, her grandmother told her good-bye and that she was going to heaven. The woman and those with her responded as most would, telling her that wasn’t true and they would see her again. Sure enough, the grandmother passed away that night. She was clearly connected with God and ready to meet him.
I Found God today in an example of faith.
Today I had a few errands to run. I figured it would take me about an hour. I left a little bit later than I had intended and everywhere I went there was traffic and road construction. It took me a half an hour to get to a store when it should have taken only 10 minutes. It was frustrating to say the least. However, I tried to make the best of it and not get all anxious or angry. I had on my “Jesus Jams” and said some prayers – mostly for patience. And it worked. When I hit more construction and lanes that converged, I let people in front of me who waved in thanks. I sang along to the music and thought of where I was and who I was with the last time I heard the song. I found myself able to go about my business without feeling stressed. That, to me, was a wonderful blessing.
I Found God today in His help to be patient.
My mom has been thinking a lot about my nephew the past couple of days. Today my dad wore his “Navy Grandpa” t-shirt. It has been too long since we have talked with him and even longer since we have seen him in person. Tonight he called. He told us all about his job, his new way of life, his girlfriend, and that he plans to come for a while around Christmas. We were very happy to hear his voice and know that things are going well for him. It was funny how he has been at the front of our minds and then he called.
I Found God today talking with my nephew.
Sometimes I feel like every day something else goes wrong. It can be very frustrating. This morning we read the meditation from the book, “Jesus Always” by Sarah Young. It said that troubles come to keep us thinking – to keep our brains working on problem solving. If we didn’t have problems to solve, we would just worry about the future. So, maybe the next time something happens, I will thank God for helping to keep our minds sharp. It also said that God knows all our struggles. While we might be surprised about the things that happen, God never is and He also knows the outcome. Trusting in that can give us comfort. It was an interesting meditation and certainly gave me words to contemplate.
I Found God today in a new way of thinking about problems.
My mom does a lot of reading and stays abreast of current events, nutrition, and medical information. Today she read an article about Parkinson’s Disease that gave her a new perspective of her illness. It said the big problem is that the brain forgets how to do normal things such as walking and even talking. However, if a person practices something over and over again, the brain can remember. My mom goes to exercise classes twice a week. She and the other participants say how helpful it is and makes them feel better. They work on a variety of exercises including dexterity, large and small motor skills, and balance. But, she explained, it only lasts a little while. The things that we take for granted, she has to think about doing. So, while she continues to struggle through this disease, we are grateful for the class, the people who are so committed to helping, and to the Parkinson’s community we have found.
I Found God today in helpful information and community.
I take lots of pictures with my phone, but there are limitations. I also own an old Minolta film camera that is too heavy to lug around places. I have been wanting to get a new digital camera. But I was very surprised when my dad pulled out a new camera this morning as an early birthday present. He is a photographer and knew exactly what he wanted to get me. I spent some time figuring out what all it can do and took some preliminary photos. It will keep me busy and I am excited to get to know more about it and try it out some more.
I Found God today in a generous gift that I will enjoy for a very long time.
My mom and I are excited for craft fair season, so we visited a couple of them today. We had lunch at one and found a place to sit in the small crowded seating area. As I was getting our food, an elderly woman asked my mom if there was a spare seat. The table was set for 3, so my mom invited her to join us. The woman told us that her daughter attends the church we were in and that she visited her each year. As we talked more, we learned that the woman was 87 years old and that her husband died 5 years ago. He also had Parkinson’s. We talked a little about the disease and she shared what was helpful for her. She talked about care giving and the family dynamic. It is always interesting meeting and chatting with new people. I find that if you talk long enough with someone, you will find a connection of some kind. And I can learn something from each person I meet. To me, it shows how we are truly one big family and our lives are intertwined in ways that we can’t even imagine. I remember at a retreat one time, a speaker talked about how our lives are like a tapestry. On the back it can look like a tangled mess, full of strings and knots. But on the other side there is a beautifully woven design. I think that is true not only of individual lives, but also of our lives interacting with one another.
I Found God today realizing how our lives intertwine with each other.
A couple of years ago, my older brother bought a truck, a trailer, and a dog. His long time dream was to retire and travel, which he started doing. He came to the city here last Spring and has spent the Summer. He would go between our house, the cabin in the mountains, and my sister’s farm. During this time, he was a tremendous help. I was able to take care of many doctor’s appointments for myself that needed to be done. I got a little extra time for myself here and there. And he spent a lot of time with my dad doing projects – both here and at the cabin. These were things that I couldn’t do – such as figuring out how to repair things and computer stuff. And then there was the trip to see the eclipse in Idaho. I guess we kept him pretty busy. During the last couple of weeks, he has been preparing himself, his trailer, and his dog to begin the next leg of their journey. His goal was to head out before the snow. He left today and made it safely to his first destination. We will miss him and his dog. I am happy for him to be able to do what he has always wanted. And I am super grateful for everything he did while he was here.
I Found God today in my brother’s kindness and unselfishness.
I saw a story today about Inky Johnson. I didn’t know anything about him, but I watched an incredibly inspirational video in which he tells his story. He played football in college and was on track to be an NFL player. He only had a few games left and his life would be changed forever. At the end of one game, his life did change forever, but not in the way he thought. After a hard hit, he nearly lost his life. The doctors worked hard to save him, but were unable to repair all the nerve damage that was done. He was left with a paralyzed arm and would never play football again. Even though that is what he had spent his whole young life working towards, he refused to let his ability – or non ability – to play define him. He pushed forward and now is a motivational speaker. On his website, the line that really struck me was, “Am I really failing, or is God prevailing?” Hearing him speak on the video and reading his story was very moving.
I Found God today in an inspirational story.
I have been helping the church by stuffing some mailings for them. It has been easy to bring home the materials and put them together. My mom has been helping quite a bit too. When I asked her this evening how she found God, she said it was in stuffing envelopes. She explained that she enjoys seeing what the church is doing and how they are evangelizing. And since she is not able to be involved in the church as much as she used to, she is glad that she is able to be helpful. That is just an example of how my mom always thinks of others.
I Found God today through my mom’s view.
Still Finding God 