Day 4 – Joy and Peace

“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13 NLT

The raw emotion of seeing my mom like this – tiny, frail, and in a coma – was heartbreaking. We cried and held each other. Then we decided to pray for her. We took hands, held hers and started praying. I cannot remember what I prayed or what the girls prayed, but I do know that God knows and that through our prayers the Holy Spirited interceded too. There was a serene moment of stillness after we prayed and later started sharing our favorite memories of her. Her quirkiness, sayings, favorite food, and memories. I lack the words to describe this special allocated time with her and all I can think of is joy. There was an unexplainable joy as we shared and celebrated her life at that moment.

My eye caught movement through the ajar door, and in walked a dove. A little behind the first one came another. We were staring at the doves, and they were staring at us. It wasn’t white, flawless doves like one would normally associate with peace like the pictures in children’s Bibles. It was two grey Cape Turtle Doves. My eldest daughter thought it was very unhygienic while I was mesmerized by how they got into the hospital and walked (with boldness) right into the isolated room. One dove I can associate with the peace I felt, and it seemed that God assured me that He will fill us with joy and peace because we trust Him. I named the second dove Joy.

Before we knew it, it was already dark outside. God has granted us over 4 hours of precious time with my mom which we would not have if we were in time for visiting hours. 4 Hours of precious time we would not have if it wasn’t for His favor and grace.

We speed-walked back to the car, then I couldn’t find my car keys.

Prayer: Father, thank You for Your grace to have filled us with joy and peace giving us hope through Your Holy Spirit. I cannot thank You enough for the precious time you gave us and the physical signs of peace and joy through the doves. I pray that anyone facing this or any similar situation will experience Your joy and peace and this verse becomes a reality for them to hold on to. Amen.