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New Headstone

Posted by eph21920 on August 19, 2024 in Death, Family, Grateful, Prayer

Last night I suddenly became aware that I hadn’t been to the cemetery since the day after my mom was buried. And that was about 6 weeks ago. She was buried with my dad at the National Cemetery. The original headstone for my dad was removed and a temporary placard was in it’s place. I was told it would be about 60 days for the new headstone to be engraved and installed. I decided to go out to visit the site today. On the way to the cemetery I stopped and got 2 dozen roses. When I arrived, I cut the stems down, got the little vases that are supplied by the cemetery, got some water, and headed over to the plot. I looked ahead down the long row, didn’t see any temporary placards, and got a little excited. As I came to the grave site, I saw that there was a new headstone. My dad’s information was on one side same as it had been and my mom’s was on the other with the words, “Forever in our hearts” as we had requested. The sun was shining bright on the new sparkly white stone. I felt a mixture of emotions – happy that the stone was in place and that it looked so nice, yet sad and suddenly aware of the reality that my mom is gone. I placed the flowers, said some prayers, let the tears flow, and just sat awhile. When I felt at peace, I headed home.

I Found God today in a mixture of emotions and the prompting to visit the cemetery.

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He Is Here

Posted by eph21920 on August 18, 2024 in Eucharist, Faith, Grace, Jesus, Present, Sacrifice

At church today, a couple spoke about their experience at the National Eucharistic Congress. They described how there were 4 routes of pilgrimages forming a cross as they all converged at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. The home of the Indianapolis Colts was transformed into an altar and place of worship for a week for about 60,000. When everyone was settled into the stadium, the opening presentation on the giant screen started with how God spoke and matter obeyed bringing light into the world and creation. The video ended with the words, “He Is Here” and the spotlight shone on the giant monstrance holding the Eucharist. As God spoke at the beginning, He spoke as Jesus Christ before He died and gave us His body. I watched much of the video later to see what the couple had experienced. It reminded me of when I took people to retreats and we would encounter Eucharistic Adoration. There was nothing like it. Nothing like Him. It was fitting that the couple spoke on this day as at Mass, the Gospel reading was Jesus saying over and over again how He was leaving us His body and that we must eat of it to have eternal life. I talked with one of the people after Mass for a bit. As he described the “feel” of the event, which was difficult to describe, I was drawn right back to those earlier retreats and understood exactly what he was talking about. To me, that is proof in and of itself that He Is Here.

I Found God today remembering and realizing God in the Eucharist.

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Making Friends

Posted by eph21920 on August 17, 2024 in Children, Family, Grateful, Joy, Life

Today there was a fair at my granddaughter’s school. Since it is so close to my house, my son, his wife, and my granddaughter parked in our lot and we all walked over. It was super hot, but we all had fun playing the games and eating cotton candy. It was joyful watching my granddaughter as she comes into her own. When she started first grade here, she was so timid and shy. Now she has many friends that she was hugging and doing things with. She even won the first raffle, which was a great way to start her birthday weekend. She was so happy. I feel mighty blessed to have them nearby.

I Found God today in my growing, joyful granddaughter.

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Healing and Grateful

Posted by eph21920 on August 16, 2024 in Creation, Faith, Friends, Grateful, Healing, Home, Sick

My neighbor and friend had been having severe pain in her stomach and intestines for a couple of months. She had been back and forth to doctors and emergency rooms until finally she had to have extensive emergency surgery on her intestines. Even when that was done, there were problems with infections. She spent over 2 weeks in the hospital. My family, the neighbors, and those who she ministered to were all praying for her. She has done many mission trips overseas to help teach English as well as spreading the message of Jesus Christ. I was grateful to hear that she came home earlier this week. Today I went over for a short visit. She recalled a time when she was in so much pain that she was actually praying for God to take her. Evidently He had other plans. She has a long recovery, but she is here. While I was visiting, some flowers were delivered. They just happened to be from my thoughtful brother. My friend started crying, saying that people have been so kind to her. I told her that she has been a blessing to so many people and now people want to bless her.

I Found God today in a healing, grateful woman.

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Making it Home

Posted by eph21920 on August 15, 2024 in Answer, Friends, Grateful, Home, Mary, Prayer

Today was the Feast of the Assumption of Mary, the mother of Jesus – when we celebrate her being taken to Heaven. I felt so blessed that a friend had my mom as the intention for Mass in the church I used to work for. That is in another state, but I went to Mass in my own parish. I prayed for my mom and many others including my friend who was traveling back home. I thought about all the people who were also praying for my mom and felt mighty humbled and grateful. Later in the day, my friend told me that her plane got re-routed due to bad weather. She asked for prayers that she would make it home tonight. I prayed that as we celebrated Mary’s going home, that my friend and others on the flight would also make their way home today. Later, my friend told me she had made it home safely.

I Found God today humbled and grateful for answered prayers.

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Wood Troll

Posted by eph21920 on August 14, 2024 in Creation, Fun, Grateful, Joy, Life, Opportunity

My friend and I greeted today from the cabin. During breakfast we talked about what to do and decided to go into town. My friend looked up a place to get a good cup of coffee. That was our only goal for the day. When we got into town, we went into the casino that I used to take my parents to and played the slot machine that was always good to my dad. Unfortunately, it wasn’t so good to me. We didn’t really want to gamble more, so we walked up main street, stopped in a few interesting stores, and found the coffee shop. When we saw some other customers with plates, we realized they had food – and it looked delicious. It was nearly lunch time, so we ordered a couple of salads. The food was fresh and tasty. It was a good find. Then we stopped at the favorite general store to get some roasted nuts and mint chocolate fudge. We decided to check out the next town over and took the scenic drive. There was another general store there with very interesting items and antiques. We saw a flyer that had a photo of the wood troll that an artist created and built in the area. I had heard about it, so we asked the store clerk how to find it and off we went. Once we went up the dirt road and parked at the site, there was a little bit of a hike. It wasn’t hard to find the gigantic troll sculpture after that. We took some photos and continued on the trail which ended at an amazing overlook of several mountain ranges. It was breathtaking. The weather was perfect. The partly cloudy sky displayed different scenes as the landscape took turns in the sunshine and shade. As we sat on the bench to take in the view, a woman offered to take our picture. She said she had taken this particular photo for many other people. It was from behind us as we admired the spectacular view. We talked about how God created such a beautiful place for us to live in and how we are so small. We were so grateful for the moment. When we decided to give up our bench, my friend offered to take the same picture for the couple who replaced us. We headed home in gratitude and awe of enjoying the amazing, unplanned day.

I Found God today in a day of perfect weather, beauty, wonder,  and friendship.

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God’s Country

Posted by eph21920 on August 13, 2024 in Creation, Faith, Friends, Grateful, Joy, Life, Travel

When I thought about what to do when my friend was here for a visit, I realized it would be a great opportunity to go to the cabin. So, today my brother went to the house in the city, and my friend and I went to the cabin. She was in awe just from the drive up as the mountains got closer and closer. Then we were in them. We have been getting a lot of rain, so the meadows were green and lush and the wildflowers were colorful and plentiful. It had been a long time since I had seen it so green. When we arrived I gave her a tour of the cabin – which is actually a house. She was surprised because I call it the cabin, it  leaves the image of a log home with the hopes of electricity and running water. We spent some time on the deck taking in the mountain air and the scenery. After lunch we went for a walk and stopped to visit with one of the neighbors. We continued on up the hill and got to the top where the view was spectacular. My friend said, “When you see all this beauty, you have to believe in God.” She continued with, “And even though God created all of this for us, He created you – He needs you.” Those were some beautiful thoughts to ponder. We got back to the cabin and enjoyed the evening thunderstorm. Just as the sun set, I said I was going to go outside to see if I could find any animals. We went out on the deck and immediately spotted a deer. Then another and another. We watched them for a while as they came quite close underneath the tall deck. We had a beautiful day walking, talking, sharing stories, struggles, and faith.

I Found God today in God’s creation and a good friend.

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Blessed Journeys

Posted by eph21920 on August 12, 2024 in Grateful, Home, Life

Today a friend of mine from out of state came for a visit. I picked her up at the airport and ended up circling the terminal a couple of times before we connected. Turns out that was just the right amount of time needed to avoid the thunderstorms on the way back. We went to my son’s house and stayed there for a few hours with his dog as he and his fiancee were flying back from their trip in Europe. Their plane arrived on time and they had no problems. When they got back to the house, the dog was so happy to see everyone. And on top of that, my neighbor texted a message that his wife was finally being discharged and going home today after 17 days in the hospital. It was good news all around and I was very grateful for the answered prayers.

I Found God today in safe journeys.

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The Race Car

Posted by eph21920 on August 11, 2024 in Answer, Car, Family, Happiness, Life, Opportunity

Since my grandson was a child he has been obsessed with race cars. He would make detailed tracks out of cardboard and put his hot wheels on them. He even learned how to make stop motion videos, creating his own stories with crashes and cotton ball smoke. When he lived near a race track, he would go to every race he could. There were meet and greets so he could get pictures of and with his favorite drivers. He continues to learn all he can about the cars and the racing circuit. That passion has only increased as he has gotten older and he dreams of when and how he can have his own car. A couple of days ago, he told me that he found a sprint car that was being sold for a very good price. He was going over all the reasons why he probably couldn’t buy it. As we talked, I encouraged him not to discount the prospect before even knowing all the details. We talked about the passions that God puts within us and that they are there for a reason. I encouraged him to pray about this opportunity and see where God would lead it. He made a phone call to the seller and realized it may be possible to get the car, although there were some issues that would need to be worked out. We talked about how even if he doesn’t get this car at this time, it would be a good learning experience to go through this process. He and his dad went to look at it today. I saw him when he came back and he was super excited as it is very likely he will be able to buy the car. My grandson told me all about the potential plans and opportunities this car would bring. It seems like this would be the first step in following his passion. I encouraged him to keep praying to follow God’s path as it is greater even than what he is considering. It was good to see him so excited.

I Found God today in my grandson’s excitement for a possibility to follow his passion.

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Finding Waldo

Posted by eph21920 on August 10, 2024 in Bible, Connected, Faith, Fun, Life

This morning I opened my favorite Hallow app and listened to a meditation on today’s scripture reading for Mass. The reflection by biblical scholar Jeff Cavins likened our search for God with looking for Waldo in the Where’s Waldo books. He relayed 7 benefits of finding Waldo and how they were the same as the benefits of searching for God. The one that stood out to me was training yourself to be free from distractions. In the Where’s Waldo books, there are plenty of other things to look at on the colorful and busy pages. Similarly, in life there is plenty of business happening all around us all the time. If we are to find God, we have to train ourselves to look through those things and quiet ourselves. Then God will become more clear. This certainly is true for me when I reflect on where I find God in each day. I thought it was a clever way of encouraging people to look for God on a daily basis.

I Found God today finding God today.

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