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| Reunion At Sunrise |
When a teenage girl discovers her great-grandmother’s wartime journal, a powerful Easter vision brings unexpected hope. As her family gathers for church—still aching from silence and distance—a miracle unfolds in real time. Let the story speak to your heart—scroll down to begin.
The sun slowly rose, its warm glow spreading across the sky like a gentle whisper. As it climbed higher, golden light spilled over the rooftops and onto the modest brick church nestled at the edge of the quiet southern town of Birmingham, Alabama. The church steeple caught the morning light and gleamed—a beacon of hope and faith.
It was Easter morning, and anticipation buzzed in the air. Inside, choir members adjusted their robes. The scent of lilies drifted from the altar. Sunlight slanted through the stained glass, warming the polished wood of the pews, which creaked as families settled into their Sunday places.
In the third pew from the front, fifteen-year-old Alaya Brooks smoothed her lavender dress and stared down at the worn leather journal resting in her hands. Its scent reminded her of old cedar and faint lavender, a perfume that still lingered in her great-grandmother’s trunk where she'd found it just days ago. Her mother had asked her to search for Easter decorations, but what she uncovered felt like something holier.
Inside the journal was a story so vivid, so tender, it had rooted itself in her chest ever since.
Josephine, her great-grandmother, had lived through World War II. As an African American woman, Josephine hadn’t been allowed to serve as a military nurse. Still, she volunteered with the local Red Cross and worked long shifts in the colored ward of the county hospital. Her journal chronicled those days when faith was the only thing that sustained her—especially after her younger brother, Jeremiah, was drafted and sent overseas.
The choir’s melody rose around her, voices weaving into harmony, filling every corner of the sanctuary. Alaya’s fingers traced the delicate cursive etched across the yellowed pages. Each word felt alive, a thread between past and present. She could almost feel Josephine’s heartbeat pulsing beneath the ink, carrying stories of sacrifice and resilience.
She’d read the journal cover to cover three times already, but one entry lingered more than the others.
It was Easter, 1943. Josephine had just received word that Jeremiah had died in combat. That night, she recorded a vision: she stood weeping in an empty field when a man in a glowing white robe appeared beside her. He said, “He is not dead—for He has risen. And your brother lives in Him.”
A week later, a telegram arrived. There had been a mistake. Jeremiah was alive and returning home.
Alaya clutched the journal tighter. Her own brother, Joshua, was serving in the Middle East. They hadn’t heard from him in three months—not since his unit had gone silent in a remote conflict zone. Her father had stopped mentioning his name. Her mother prayed nightly, voice trembling through whispered pleas. And Alaya?
She held onto Josephine’s vision like a lifeline. Like proof that resurrection wasn’t just something ancient. It could still happen.
A soft hand brushed her cheek.
“Alaya, you okay, baby?” her grandmother asked, her voice warm and steady.
“Yes, ma’am,” Alaya whispered, managing a smile. She slipped the journal into her purse and glanced toward the sanctuary doors, half-hoping, half-doubting.
The service began. Familiar hymns rose like sunlight breaking through clouds. The pastor’s voice rang with the promise of new life, of stone rolled away, of tombs emptied.
But Alaya’s thoughts were far from the pulpit—on her brother, on Josephine, on the way silence had settled into their house like fog.
The preacher’s words wrapped around her: “He is risen. He is risen indeed.”
Maybe, she thought. Maybe still.
Just as the choir began singing “Because He Lives,” the sanctuary doors creaked open.
Heads turned. A ripple of gasps swept the congregation.
There he was—Joshua.
Leaner than before, his Army fatigues loose on his frame, but unmistakably him. His eyes scanned the crowd until they landed on Alaya. His smile was quiet and certain.
Time paused.
Her mother’s Bible fell to the floor with a soft thud. Her father rose, hands trembling. Alaya stood frozen, her heart hammering, until her feet carried her forward, faster and faster.
“Joshua?” Grandma’s voice cracked.
Alaya crashed into him, arms wrapped tight around his waist, her face pressed into the crook of his neck. He held her just as tightly.
“I told you I’d come back,” he whispered, voice hoarse but strong.
They sat together through the rest of the service—Joshua in the center, surrounded by his sisters and parents, their hands clasped like a chain unbroken.
As the final Amen echoed through the sanctuary, Alaya reached into her purse and handed him the journal.
“Great-Grandma had a vision once,” she whispered. “After they told her her brother was gone.”
Joshua opened the cover, thumbing gently through the pages. The corners were soft with age.
“She believed God showed her he was still alive. She held onto it. And a week later, he came home.”
Joshua read a line, nodded. “Sometimes, that’s what keeps you going out there.”
Alaya tilted her head. “How did you get here? I mean...we didn’t know if—”
He smiled, weary but sure. “They airlifted us out. I didn’t even know they’d sent the message until yesterday. I asked them to drop me at the closest base to home.”
A pause.
“I needed to be here today.”
Later that afternoon, the family gathered beneath a white canopy in the churchyard. Tables brimmed with fried chicken, deviled eggs, potato salad, and peach cobbler warm from the oven. Laughter laced the air. Cousins chased each other between folding chairs while the elders shared stories of Easters past.
Joshua recounted his deployment—not the worst of it, but the moments that anchored him: a cross built from scraps of wood on Easter morning, a care package with socks and honey buns, the soldier who sang hymns during watch duty.
Alaya sat beside him, a slice of sweet potato pie on her plate, the journal resting between them.
“You gonna write in it?” he asked, tapping the leather cover.
She nodded. “I think I will. Somebody should know what hope looks like.”
He smiled. “And what it feels like.”
As the sun dipped behind the pines, casting golden shadows across the yard, Alaya opened to the final page and began to write:
April 20, 2025 – Easter Sunday
Today, we witnessed resurrection.
Not only from death, but from despair. From distance. From doubt.
He walks among us—in every return, every reunion, every sunrise.
That evening, as twilight settled over Birmingham, the family circled on Grandma’s front porch, hymnals in hand. Their voices rose and fell in gentle harmony, floating out into the cool spring night. No one rushed. No one hurried. The air smelled of cut grass and fading lilies.
And there, beneath the hush of stars and the warmth of belonging, their story continued—
an echo of grace, a miracle lived.
Enjoy more heartfelt stories from the Echoes of Faith collection—each one crafted to uplift, inspire, and reflect God's presence in everyday life. Read more stories »
Note: The story above is a work of fiction created for inspirational purposes. Any resemblance to actual individuals or events is purely coincidental.
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