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Sister’s Call

Posted by eph21920 on November 17, 2023 in Birthday, Connected, Family, Joy, Life, Relationship

I share my birthday with my (favorite) aunt – my mother’s sister. We called her, but she was having trouble with her phone. So we sang “Happy Birthday” to her on a voice mail. We texted over the past couple of days and finally were able to talk on the phone today. She still had not been able to hear the message, so we sang to her, which she really enjoyed. I loved hearing the sisters talk and thought about what a blessing it was that they still have a close relationship even though they are far away from each other.

I Found God today in my mom and her sister.

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Blustery Walk

Posted by eph21920 on November 16, 2023 in Creation, Family, Happiness, Weather

We always check the weather in the morning at breakfast. When we saw that today would be one of the last warm days before a cool down, we decided to go to the park. We went to one that was close to the house and not too big. It was a place that the city uses for sports and included a paved walkway around the outside of the fields. When we started off, the breeze was warm and comfortable. After a few minutes, I noticed the trees up ahead suddenly blowing like crazy and leaves blowing our direction. I stopped and told Mom to hang on as her hat went flying up. Luckily it was on a strap under her chin so it didn’t blow completely off. But it did cause her hearing aids and sunglasses to get all out of sorts. I turned the wheelchair around so the wind was at our back and we got her all situated again. In hindsight, I should have turned around before we were hit by the gale. In any case, we continued our walk but were a little more aware of upcoming wind gusts. I was glad it wasn’t actually windy the whole time. Other than that, we had a good time looking at the stream, seeing the dogs, and watching the guys throw the discs at the disc golf area. It felt so good to be in sunshine and fresh air. I was grateful to get my mom outside again for a while.

I Found God today getting outside.

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Always Have God

Posted by eph21920 on November 15, 2023 in Answer, Connected, Faith, Hope, Life, Present, Struggles

Today was a particularly challenging day. As always, God showed up. It was in today’s meditation from “Jesus Calling” which my mom read to us after dinner. It said at the end,

“You will always face trouble in this life. But more importantly, you will always have Me with you, helping you to handle whatever you encounter. Approach problems with a light touch by viewing them in My revealing Light.”

I Found God today in His words at the end of a challenging day.

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Loved To the Moon and Back

Posted by eph21920 on November 14, 2023 in Birthday, Connected, Family, Generosity, Grateful, Love

I received a birthday package from my brother today that was so touching it made me cry. There were 3 items with tags that said, “Giving”. There was a soft, cozy wrap around shawl with a tag that said in part,”…always know you are being thought of, cheered on, and loved for exactly who you are…” There was a candle with a note that said in part, “this candle can be a moment of comfort in the world…” And there was a necklace with a dangling crescent moon and star. The note in the box said in part, “loved to the moon and back.” That one hit me the hardest as I remembered one of the last times I took my parents shopping individually to buy gifts for one another. They each chose a gift that said, “love you to the moon and back.” I felt so blessed by the thoughtfulness of my brother.

I Found God today in my thoughtful brother.

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Sweet Celebration

Posted by eph21920 on November 13, 2023 in Birthday, Family, Food, Friends, Generosity, Grateful

Last week, our friend who visits on Mondays asked what treat she could bring for my birthday today. I told her I would have to think about it and get back to her. During the week I thought about chocolate eclairs, but I didn’t want our friend to go through that much trouble. Then I remembered the delicious doughnut shop was close to her house. So I asked for chocolate glazed doughnuts. She showed up this morning with hands full of two boxes. She said when she received my request, she had already gone to the Dutch bakery and purchased chocolate eclairs! Then she stopped and got doughnuts on her way this morning. Also my neighbor stopped over with her annual thanksgiving pumpkin bread. And my sister bought a small carrot cake. It was a sweet celebration of a day. I felt blessed by such thoughtful people.

I Found God today in thoughtful people and sweet treats.

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Church Adventure

Posted by eph21920 on November 12, 2023 in Faith, Family, Generosity, Grateful, Life, Problem, Service, Stranger

This morning my mom decided she felt good enough to go to church, so off we went. Unfortunately, we arrived a little too late to get a handicapped parking spot. Nevertheless, mom used her walker and walked into the church. She was glad to be there and I was glad to take her. When it came time to leave, she took several steps to get moving, but it became obvious that she wouldn’t be able to walk back out to the car. I found a bench just inside the doors of the church. She was able to make it there and sat down. I asked her to stay put and went out to the car and got the wheelchair. I got back in and got mom settled in the wheelchair. Then I was trying to figure out how I was going to push the wheelchair and the walker at the same time out to the car. Luckily, a woman nearby noticed our predicament and offered to help. So I pushed mom in the wheelchair and the woman followed with the walker. On our way out, someone held the door open for us. It was a woman I know who saw me whiz by with the wheelchair. Her husband is struggling with cancer, but they were both at church. After she got him settled in the car, she came back to see if I needed help. I felt so blessed to have people help when I felt so distressed.

I Found God today in the blessing of helpful people.

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Craft Fair

Posted by eph21920 on November 11, 2023 in Family, Grateful, Joy, Life

My mom was feeling pretty good this morning, so we went to a craft fair where my daughter in law was selling some tumblers and pens that she makes. The place where it was held was only 5 minutes away. We arrived shortly after it started so there weren’t too many people there yet and it was fairly easy to navigate the wheelchair through the rooms and hallways. Everyone was so nice and said hello to my mom. One woman at a table of trinkets came around to the front and offered my mom a rock. It was a “worry stone” and had an indent in it. The idea is you can hold it in your hand and rub the indent with your thumb or finger when you are worried or agitated. The woman said my mom could have it. That was super nice of her. My mom held and rubbed the rock until we got to my daughter in law’s table. We looked at all the festive tumblers and pens. My mom chose a pen with poinsettias on it to purchase. I was so happy my mom enjoyed another outing.

I Found God today getting my mom out again.

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Near Death Experiences

Posted by eph21920 on November 10, 2023 in Angel, Answer, Bible, Connected, Death, Jesus, Life

I have been listening to a series on the Hallow app about near death experiences. It has been enlightening and fascinating. The series is based on studies that have been done and interviews with people of all ages and walks of life who have physically died or nearly died and came back to life. Each session included a story from someone who has had such an experience and what they witnessed. All of them left their physical body and went to a different place. Many looked back on their physical body, the hospital, or even their home and were able to recount with great details the conversations that people had and things they did. One funny detail that struck me was a person described a shoe that was sitting outside on the ledge of the hospital. It was found exactly as they were told. Most people went to a beautiful place of light where they met loved ones, angels, or even Jesus. However, some went to a place of darkness and despair. When they cried out to God, they were rescued. Once back in the land of the living, they amended their life. The experiences were also explained and correlated to the descriptions in the Scriptures. It was all amazing to listen to. Bottom line is that there is more to each one of us than our physical bodies and the life we live on this Earth. When we die, we will change, but will continue to live. And it is up to us to prepare now for that transition as we never know when it will happen. It challenged me to keep this truth in front of my mind as I go about my daily work and activity. It also gives me great comfort and hope as I think about my dad and care for my mother.

I Found God today pondering life after death.

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Following Through

Posted by eph21920 on November 8, 2023 in Answer, Faith, Grateful, Trust, Weather

A couple of weeks ago, I made a trip to the cabin to get the hot water heater replaced. The company contacted me last week to set up the inspection which I scheduled for today. My sister had rearranged her schedule so she could be home with my mom. A couple days ago I realized it was supposed to snow. I debated rescheduling the appointment, but really felt like I should go. I prayed and chose to give the matter to God. I left early in the morning to make sure I was there in case I was first on the list. Turns out I was number 8. It was beautiful when I arrived. The sun was shining and a light breeze was blowing. When I got to the cabin, I did my walk through and found the upstairs door standing wide open. Then I remembered when I was there a couple weeks ago, I had sprayed and killed a black widow spider in a little closet up there. I apologized to her and opened the door to air out the chemicals. Evidently I never went back up to close it. Everything else was fine. I was immediately grateful that I had made the trip. The inspector came a little after noon and was in and out. I was grateful he was earlier than anticipated and quick in his work. Just as I was finishing up things and packing up to leave, the clouds engulfed the sky. On the way home, I hit a small stretch of road that was snow packed as it had already been snowing there for some time. Then, the closer I got to the city, the more things cleared up. I was grateful that I was able to leave when I did and for the safe drive. I thanked God for His prompting and the faith to follow through.

I Found God today listening to His prompting and faithfully following through.

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Life of Prayers

Posted by eph21920 on November 7, 2023 in Answer, Life, Prayer

I read a quote today by one of my favorite musicians – TobyMac. It said, “You are currently living at least one of the prayers you used to pray.” Good thought to ponder.

I Found God today thinking about how I’m living my prayers.

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