“And behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus….
conversing with each other about all the things which had taken place…when Jesus Himself approached and began traveling with them… and He said, ‘Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?’…Thus it is written that the Christ should suffer and rise again from the dead the third day and that repentance for forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all the nations beginning from Jerusalem…You are witnesses… I am sending for the promise of My Father upon you.” Luke 24:13, 15, 26, 46-48 (NASB)
His Imprint
Years after Emmaus, a husband and wife were sitting in their living room conversing over some exciting news on television when a loud thud sounded like something had hit the picture window. Alarmed, they looked over to the window and, seeing nothing, ran outside. There on the patio floor was the lifeless body of a precious dove.
The couple talked sadly as they looked it over up close, appreciating its beauty more in death than in its lifetime. The life was taken out of it by a hard impact with the window. Later in the day in that same room the setting sun shone its light brightly, revealing on the window the unmistakable perfect outline of the dove. At impact, the dust from its feathers left a perfect imprint of the dove in flight. The wings were outstretched; the tiny feet and legs were pulled up tight against its body; the tail feathers were fanned out; and its small head and beak were turned to the right! The dove upon impact had left its perfect impression on the glass window. We were witnesses!
Isn’t that like our Christian faith! It is living because Jesus’ death on the cross so impacted our lives that by dying He left God’s Holy Spirit on us to be a reminder of all His life represented. And isn’t it in losing something that we look on it more closely and appreciate it more greatly?
The Holy Spirit leaves a perfect impression on every believer. He seals our faith. WE are His witnesses. This is the exciting Good News of the gospel of grace, as told us in John 3:16. When two or more of His witnesses pray, He is in their midst. He will always move us out with this news for all mankind.
“Dear Father, let us join our hearts and minds to praise Your name. Empower us to share the Good News with the world from our living rooms with our visitors; from our workplaces; from our pulpits; and just in daily living. We love you, Lord. Thank You for sending Your Son! In His Name we pray! Amen.”
It is amazing how God’s timing is always perfect, in all things. While reading this, I was taken back 9+ years ago, when exactly the same thing happened! One of the “mourning doves” that would perch on top of the chimney (which was never used as we lived in the desert) had flown full-force into our dual-paned window which reflected the blue sky, clouds, trees and the mountains beyond, only to lose it’s life and fall to the patio, and sing no more! Oh how we loved hearing that sound each day. The imprint was there, just as described, and my heart broke when I saw it lying there. In a moment’s notice, while in full flight, it’s life was ended and for some unknown reason, I could not toss this beautiful bird aside, nor place it in the trash, so I gently wrapped it in soft paper towels and placed it in a gallon sized bag and put it in the freezer until I could let it go. Praise God that His Holy Spirit does “imprint” us the moment we accept His Son as our Savior, and I thank the writer for showing us that we will have the privilege of leaving His ‘imprint’ on those we ‘bump’ into as we ‘fly through this life’. God Bless You all..