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Supporting the Military

Posted by eph21920 on January 25, 2017 in Family, Grateful, Life, Past, Sacrifice

My dad and I spent some time at the Department of Motor Vehicles today to get some business taken care of. Some of the people there thanked him for his service when they realized he has retired from the military. We talked about that later on with my mom. Not so many years ago, the American public had a much different opinion about people in the military – especially those who fought in Viet Nam. Those soldiers followed orders from those in higher places and when they came “home”, they were certainly not given a hero’s welcome. In many cases they were greeted with hatred instead of acknowledging the sacrifice they and their families made. The tide has changed at this point. My dad said he very much enjoyed his military career and should be thanking the American people for their support. I suggested that be his response the next time it comes up.

I Found God today in support that encouraged my dad.

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God’s With Mom

Posted by eph21920 on January 24, 2017 in Faith, Family, Grateful, Present

I was glad that my mom felt even better today. Her friend came over as usual, but my mom was only up for playing one piano duet as opposed to several. It sounded pretty good to me. I could see her struggle, but she did what she could. I asked her tonight how she found God today. She said she was thinking about Him more than usual today – just about all day long. She said she felt that God was really with her during the entire day. He helped her continue moving on even though she didn’t much feel like it.

I Found God today as my mom was able to feel His presence during the day.

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Pain in the Back

Posted by eph21920 on January 23, 2017 in Answer, Connected, Faith, Family, Grateful, Sick, Trust

My mom was feeling pretty bad yesterday. She made it to church, but that was about it. She takes a pill once a month that is supposed to help with her bone density, but it always makes her feel bad. This was an extreme case. She was having trouble with a back ache a few days ago, and perhaps this pill exacerbated it. By night time, she was in so much pain she was shaking and she was nauseous. I wondered if there was something else going on and if she needed to be seen by a doctor. Of course, that meant taking her to an Emergicare or Emergency Room. I knew what that held and wondered if doing so would make things worse. I prayed for wisdom to know what to do as my dad and I took her vitals and did some other tests. It seemed to me that the biggest problem was the pain. My dad and I got her into bed after some pain meds and a pain patch on her back. Things started to calm down. My dad bought her a wonderful bed a few months ago, and she adjusted the head and feet to just the right angle to take the pressure off her back. As I went to bed, I realized I had done exactly what I was told earlier in the day at church. I prayed for wisdom, did all I knew to do, and trusted God as I put my mom in His hands. While she wasn’t quite back to normal today, she did feel much better. We were all very grateful.

I Found God today being able to practice what I was preached.

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Mind and Faith

Posted by eph21920 on January 22, 2017 in Answer, Connected, Faith, Trust

At church today, the priest talked about how we can – and should – use our minds and our faith together. They go hand in hand. God gives us our minds to help us figure out problems, to learn new things, to make decisions and so much more. God gives us faith in Him that when we have reached our limits as to what we can do, we trust that God will take our efforts and bless them when we give them over to Him. I appreciated the message.

I Found God today in encouraging preaching.

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Thoughts on God

Posted by eph21920 on January 21, 2017 in Answer, Connected, Faith, Life

I woke up this morning tired and cranky for no reason. Before I even opened my eyes, I thought about how I felt kind of achy. I thought about what I had to do  – exercise, usual daily work, etc. – and how I didn’t want to do any of it. I didn’t want to get out of bed. I just wanted to lay there, or maybe watch movies all day. I thought that wasn’t actually going to happen, and I was dragging myself down with these thoughts. I opened my eyes and looked at the picture of Jesus hanging on the wall. I reminded myself that when negative thoughts get stuck in my head, I need to think about Jesus – God – His Love and Care and Mercy. I stretched and thanked God that I was awake for another day. I thanked Him for all He provides for me. I thanked Him for my parents and their health at this particular time. I just started thanking Him for as much as I could. I exercised and started my day. At breakfast, my mom read the daily meditation. The page was all about getting out of your head and putting your thoughts on God. Message received. I was able to go about my day doing the usual daily work, etc. with a much better attitude. The day was much more entertaining than watching movies all day anyways.

I Found God today by trying to keep my thoughts on Him instead of myself.

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Wisdom at the Inauguration

Posted by eph21920 on January 20, 2017 in Faith, Hope, New

I watched some of the inauguration today. Among the drama, strong language, and protests, it was hopeful to hear the different prayers that were spoken. They were words of peace, guidance, and grace. There were actually several references to the need for God’s wisdom. It was a beautiful reminder that God is bigger than this president, than this government, and bigger than the problems in our country. This administration season will come and go, but God’s grace, love, and wisdom is never ending. I appreciated the faith that was shared and trust that these church leaders will be praying for our new president and our country. I know I will be.

I Found God today in words of wisdom from many church leaders.

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Angel in the Sky

Posted by eph21920 on January 19, 2017 in Angel, Creation, Family

We had a little break from the winter weather today, so we decided to spend the day at the cabin. The sunshine, the snow on the mountains, and the clear blue sky was just gorgeous. When we arrived and got everything settled, I went out on the deck. The air was so crisp and clear. There was no wind blowing and all I heard was a bird or two chirping in the distance. I exhaled as I basked in the warm sun. My mom noticed a cloud – probably the only one in the sky. She said it looked like an angel. As we watched, the shape changed, but it certainly did look an angel flying across the sky. We all enjoyed the extremely relaxing afternoon and the break from the cold winter weather. We felt like God was smiling upon us.

I Found God today in a beautiful day.

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Learning Pickleball

Posted by eph21920 on January 18, 2017 in Answer, Begin, Friends, Fun, Happiness, Laughter, New

A couple of weeks ago, I was talking with a friend about the game “Pickleball”. It seems to be gaining popularity – especially with people in their 40’s and older. I thought it sounded like fun and perhaps it would be something I should learn. This week at the Parkinson’s support group, it was announced that they were starting pickleball. It was open to everyone in the group, it would include lessons on how to play, and it was free. I was all over that. I went to the community center this evening and met up with the small group that was there. It was made up of parkinsonians and caregivers alike. One of the couples had been playing for a while and they brought in the instructor. Everyone was very nice and very patient. The game was fun and pretty easy. It felt great to learn something new, to move and exercise, and to meet new people. All the things I like to do. Then I joined another group of friends for dinner and laughed and laughed. Another thing I like to do.

I Found God today spending some time spending a little “me” time.

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Chatty Men

Posted by eph21920 on January 17, 2017 in Food, Joy, Life, Stranger

Today I went to lunch with my dad, mom, and a family friend. We tried a new restaurant and sat at a large booth with a large table. It was a little difficult to carry on a conversation as the music in the background was a little too loud and the booth behind me held 6 very chatty men. We asked the waitress if the music could be turned down and she got right on it. When our lunch came, we all got very quiet as we dug in to the delicious food. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but it was pretty easy to hear the chatty men behind me. They had several different conversations going on at the same time. They talked about wildlife and hunting and children and wives. After lunch, they lingered in the parking lot, still talking. They thanked each other for coming and exchanged man-hugs. We commented on how nice it was to see a group of men enjoying each other’s company so much.

I Found God today in a group of men enjoying friendship.

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Not My Schedule

Posted by eph21920 on January 16, 2017 in Answer, Faith, Family, Life, Plan, Problem

Some words from this morning’s meditation really touched my heart, “Your desire to feel in control is often the culprit behind your frustration. You plan your day and expect others to behave in ways that expedite your plans. When that doesn’t happen, you face a choice: to resent the situation or to trust Me (God). Remember that I am in control and My ways are higher than yours – as the heavens are higher than the earth.” It seems I need to learn this over and over every day – or more like several times every day. For years I was used to having so much to do working full time with hours all over the place, raising a son pretty much on my own, meals, grocery shopping, housework, etc. etc. I would always have a plan for each day and squeeze as much into it as I could before I would collapse into bed at night. Now, I never know what any day will bring. I try not to plan out everything that I want to get done. The reality is that caring for my parents is priority #1. Each day brings a new challenge and that will preempt any kind of “schedule” I may have in my head. For example, today I had lunch warm and on the table ready to eat. My dad complained about something in his eye. He tried putting in several eye drops, but that didn’t work. He flushed it with water with no results. I looked in it, but couldn’t see anything. He tried the pull your eyelid down over your bottom eyelashes trick – nothing. My mom made her way into her room to pull out her handy dandy home remedy book. In the mean time, my dad was laying on the sofa continuing with drops and explaining that he could feel it in different places. I got out the magnifying glass and looked all around again. This time I found the culprit. There was a hair curled up in his eye. I held his eye open so it wouldn’t move and managed to get a damp tissue. After a couple of attempts, I finally got the hair out which resulted in immediate relief. We all rejoiced, warmed lunch back up again and sat down over half an hour later to eat. I thanked God for being in control.

I Found God today in a reminder that my time and schedule is not the same as God’s.

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