The love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. Romans 5:5 (NAS)
As I sat in the hospital room with my ninety-two-year-old mother, I longed to be comforted. She was so very sick and weak that I knew without being told that the prognosis wasn’t good. I’d done everything I could think of to comfort her.
The nurses shut the door each time they left our room. I felt closed in and alone, and I longed for someone—anyone—to come through the door.
I was staring at the door when it opened and a tiny, well-dressed, young woman came in. She smiled and offered her hand. “Hi, I’m Brenda,” she said.
Reluctantly, I shook her hand. “Can I do anything for you?” she asked.
“No, thank you,” I said, eyeing her neat little CHAPLAIN pin.
“May I pray with you?”
I looked into her eyes. “How will you pray?” I asked bluntly. I didn’t want a canned prayer or a memorized one. I didn’t want this efficient young thing just to mumble something and then check us off on her list.
She looked at me silently for a moment. Her face glowed. “I’ll pray as the Holy Spirit leads—unless you’d rather I didn’t.”
Suddenly, I knew there were four of us in the room. “Oh, please do pray. Thank you, Brenda,” I managed.
Brenda prayed powerfully, concluding with Romans 8:38–39: “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
She couldn’t have known it was my mother’s favorite Scripture.
Holy Spirit, the way You suddenly bind believers together remains a marvelous mystery!
