As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:16 NIV
I do not know doves very well so when I complained to my husband about the constant hooting of an owl near our home, he replied, “That is not an owl. There are doves in our yard every day.” What? Doves sound like owls? Well, to me they do.
My husband also informed me that they usually mate for life. Well, since I am a sucker for love, I had a newfound respect for the paired-up love birds! They “coo” to each other! How sweet! Some of them mourn their mate for a very long time after they die, which is sad, but meaningful too. It speaks volumes about their attachment.
That the Holy Spirit came in the form of a dove means so much. The Holy Spirit descended from heaven as God expressed His pleasure in His Son, Jesus. Did you ever realize that, at the moment Jesus was baptized, God, the Holy Spirit and Jesus were all together, all present in the same event playing out in the water? Wow. It moves me that all three of them were in accord, united in a heavenly purpose.How special!
A dove was also a major part of Noah’s story. The dove was released from the ark and it found land and brought back an olive leaf. It was a sign that God saved Noah and his family from the flood. There was plant life outside the ark!
When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth. Genesis 8:11 NIV
So when you see a dove or two, as the case may be, think of the Holy Spirit descending from Heaven as God was pleased with His Son. Think of God’s promise to Noah to save him and His family from the flood. Also think of Noah’s obedience to God in building the Ark in preparation for the flood to come. Think of a dove’s love!
A dove’s love can remind us of these ABC’s…
Ask Jesus to wash our sins away and confess that we need His love and forgiveness.
Be so obedient, that God will say He is well-pleased with us.
Celebrate that the Holy Spirit descends like a dove and guides all we do.
Doves will now remind me that we have a team of loving experts to coach us all along life’s way…The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are all in one accord, attached to the events of our lives. They all love us so:)
Christina
Glory in the Morning 
When my brother and I were caring for my mom, age 88, we found a Mourning Dove, like the ones pictured, in her cedar hedge.
The dove was so calm, and we understood why they are the symbols of peace.
I went to visit the dove every day, and she looked at me with round, trusting eyes, and never moved.
One morning, the dove was not there, she had gone to look for food. I looked closer, at the nest.
In the nest were two baby chicks, also looking at me with round, trusting eyes.
Later we learned that there had been two doves, both mom and dad dove took turns sitting on the nest. 🤗🌼
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What a sweet story! Sorry for the delayed response. I am not on my phone much near the weekend. I like doves more and more! Thanks for telling me this!
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