By Jenny Koch
Connecting Faith and Life
I’ve heard a lot of reflections on the recent National Eucharist Congress. Multiple days of liturgy and music, speakers and events made my legs tired and my soul renewed. It's really hard to put into words the “Godsequences” that happened at the conference. It was full of providential moments. I literally bumped into a painting of Blessed Hannah and started a conversation with Catholic nurses with similar interests. Leaving dinner one night, I encountered a priest, who knew a priest, who had married a friend. It was almost constant. The little reminders of God's providence are reminders that we are exactly where God wants us to be.
The best way to summarize my time in Indianapolis is summed up well by George Strait’s song – “I Saw God Today.” When we entered the downtown area on Thursday, we saw massive lines. Hours of waiting by thousands of people, yet no complaining. I saw God today. On day two, after logging over 15,000 steps visiting booths, a beautiful bride of Christ ushered me into the Sacrament of Penance while holding a sign — “confession — no waiting.” I saw God today. Saturday was unbelievable. Restored and renewed after an evening with friends, I had the opportunity to sit quietly in adoration. The face on the Shroud was clear to me. It was indeed a divine encounter in prayer, like all other divine encounters that began in the streets of Indianapolis and continued through the halls of the conference. I saw God today.
His fingerprints are everywhere. Not only in the streets of Indy or the speakers of renown but in my own family. In the whispers and tears, and even the tired nights of back-to-school season, I can better see the presence of God after experiencing the extraordinary. And I think that is what the Congress taught us all. In the Mass and all of the Sacraments, in the Corporal Works of Mercy and in prayer — “I know He is here but I don’t look.” I can better see God in the ordinary now that his presence in the Extraordinary — 60,000 Catholics in one place — has inspired my faith. My faith that hope in the unseen has been recharged. Like a dead battery needing to jump, my soul has a restart, another chance to see clearly God moving in my life, motivating me to GO make disciples. I pray the same for you whether you attended the congress or not. Keep looking for the fingerprints.
“Just walked down the street to the coffee shop
Had to take a break
I've been by her side for 18 hours straight
Saw a flower growing in the middle of the sidewalk
Pushing up through the concrete
Like it was planted right there for me to see
“The flashing lights
The honking horns
All seem to fade away
In the shadow of the hospital
At 5:08
I saw God today
“I've been to church
I've read the book
I know He's here
But I don't look
Near as often as I should
Yeah, I know I should
“His fingerprints are everywhere
I just look down to stop and stare
Open my eyes and then I swear
I saw God today
“Saw a couple walking by
They were holding hands
And she had that glow
Yeah, I couldn't help
But notice she was starting to show
“Stood there for a minute
Taking in the sky
Lost in that sunset
A splash of amber melting into shades of red
Chorus
“Got my face pressed up against the nursery glass
She's sleeping like a rock
My name on her wrist
Wearing tiny pink socks
“She's got my nose
She's got her mama's eyes
My brand new baby girl
She's a miracle
I saw God today.”
— “I Saw God Today,” recorded by George Strait © 2008