Worship Melodies: February 2012

Angels: A Jack-of-All-Trades!

~~ Psalm 91:11-14 (NIV84) ~~ For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. “Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

by Carley Cooper

Photo by Carla Cooper
One of many Angels in my collection
All Copyrights Reserved

This is the fifth and final article in this current series on angels. In the first post (Angels From Heaven) I talked about how people in our lives can be like angels sent by God to help us. I shared a poem I wrote to someone special in my life who has been like an angel for me. In the second post (Who Is Your Guardian Angel?) I talked about how God has given us angels, celestial beings, to protect us; to keep us from danger. Sometimes, if we are paying close enough attention, we will even get to see our angels as they’re digging us out of a pit that we got ourselves into! My friend and author, Paul Duarte, experienced this first hand; literally! As a Worship Melodies Guest Author, he shared his personal true story of being rescued by an angel from a situation that could have been fatal, on a cold winter day. In the third post (I Think I Just Saw An Angel) I talked about how God uses angels, of all types, to redirect us and keep us from getting into dangerous situations; or to keep us from wandering into a place that was never in His will for us to be. I shared my own angel story about a woman who pulled me back when I was about to go ‘over the edge’. Then, in the fourth post (The Warm and Fuzzy Side of Angels) I talked about how our angels are there to give us comfort in our time of need.

So with all of this angel talk about how they interact with us; what does the bible say about them? First of all, did you know that the bible mentions the word ‘Angel’ 290 times! Now, that’s a lot of angel talk! So, for certain, it’s not possible to go into much depth in an article or two. Many volumes can be written before we could really come to understand the full purpose that they have in our lives; and you can be sure that they are indeed important, or God would not have created them (Colossians 1:16). The list of questions that we have about angels can go on and on:

What are angels?
Where did they come from?
Are our loved ones who have passed on, now angels?
What do they look like? Do they have bodies?
What’s the deal with wings and halo’s?
What are their purpose?
Are all angels members of the ‘Good Guys’ team?

Any one of these questions, and more, can be a whole study on its own. The word ‘Angel’, in the Old Testament, comes from the Hebrew word Mal’ak, meaning ‘messenger, ambassador’. In the New Testament, from the Greek word Aggelos, also meaning ‘messenger’. On a side note, I highly recommend the FREE bible study software eSword to assist in doing these types of in-depth studies. The bible talks about angels as celestial spirits, and gives us many examples of appearances from angels.

Angels are referred to as messengers (Luke 1:11-20, Luke 1:26-38, Luke 2:9-14), ambassadors (2 Chronicles 35:21, Isaiah 30:4), servants, worriers (Revelation 12:7), and they even go into battle (Daniel 10:13, 10:21, 12:1). But the list doesn’t stop there. Angels have many references:

the Angel of the Lord
the Angel of God
His Angel
An Angel
Mine Angel
An Angel of God
Angel from Heaven
Strong Angel
Mighty Angel
Holy Angels
The Archangel
Michael the Archangel
Michael and His Angels
Gabriel

They hold different forms; such as Seraphim (Isaiah 6:2), Cherubim (Hebrews 9:5), and Archangels (Jude 1:9).

Sometimes ordinary people (Luke 7:24), priests (Malachi 2:7), prophets (Malachi 3:1), and church leaders (Revelation 1:20) are also referred to as messengers of the Lord.

People and angels are two separate groups (Matthew 22:30). Angels are celestial beings, but they can sometimes appear to be human (Genesis 19:1-22). If God wants you to be able to see them, He will open your eyes so you can see them (2 Kings 6:17). Not all angels are said to have wings. We’re told that Seraphim's and Cherubim have wings (Isaiah 6:1-3); but we are never told that they are the cute plump, babies that we see in pictures. The bible only ever refers to them as adults. Nowhere in the bible do people have the response of pinching chubby cheeks or playing with kids as their response when an angel appears to them. They are stronger than man, but not invincible (Psalm 103:20, 2 Peter 2:11). They are wiser than people, but they’re still students; they are not all-knowing like God(2 Samuel 14:20; Matthew 24:36). They are more decent, gracious, righteous and dignified than man; but not perfect like Jesus (Daniel 9:21-23, 10:10-14).

Angels have a lot of purposes. We’ve already talked about those people in our lives that are our angels. We also noted how angels can protect and guide us, deliver messages and comfort us. But that’s not all! They also teach us things (Acts 7:52-53), provide us with material things (Genesis 21:17-20, 1 Kings 19:6), encourage and take care of us (Matthew 4:11, Acts 5:19-20), be an answer to prayer (Acts 12:1-17), and be there for believers when we are about to die (Luke 16:22). They worship and praise God, and they carry out His will (Isaiah 6:1-3).

So, they sound pretty awesome; don’t they?! But don’t get too excited about all this, just yet. See, as great as they are we are not to worship them (Revelation 22:8-9). Not all angels wear a white robe and polished halo. And not all that do, are good guys. They are not perfect; they can commit sin like the rest of us (2 Peter 2:4). They can make the decision to choose God or reject Him (Jude 1:6). Even those that cheer for the dark side are referred to as angels (Matthew 25:41). As a matter of fact, Satan, being an expert in deceit, can disguise himself, or anything else he wishes to use, as something wonderful in order to trick us into sinning. He’s referred to as the angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).

For me, all this information boils down to one thing! God loves us! So, much that He makes sure we always have the support, guidance, protection, help, instructions, and the stuff that we need in our lives; for our whole life. Our angels are with us always; from the time we are born until we are ready to walk through Heaven’s gates! When God’s hands are full; He sends His angels to help. They do so many things, fill so many purposes that I can only think of them as a Jack-of-All-Trades... perfectly trained in each and every trade by God Himself ... all because He loves us that much!

~~ Dear God ~~ You are all-knowing, invincible, and perfect. Your glory and mercy is incomprehensible to us. I have skills that can help me, and others in my life, accomplish many things; but they are but a drop in the ocean compared to all the training that You have given to the Jack-of-All-Trades workers. You have done all this, and provided me with a team of angels to get me through this journey on earth until I can come home to be with Jesus forever. Thank You for this Lord. In Jesus name, AMEN.

The Warm and Fuzzy Side of Angels

by Carley Cooper

Photo by Carla Cooper
One of many Angels in my collection
All Copyrights Reserved

This is the fourth article in this current series on angels. In the first post (Angels From Heaven) I talked about how people in our lives can be like angels sent by God to help us. I shared a poem I wrote to someone special in my life who has been like an angel for me. In the second post (Who Is Your Guardian Angel?) I talked about how God has given us angels, celestial beings, to protect us; to keep us from danger. Sometimes, if we are paying close enough attention, we will even get to see our angels as they’re digging us out of a pit that we got ourselves into! My friend and author, Paul Duarte, experienced this first hand; literally! As a Worship Melodies Guest Author, he shared his personal true story of being rescued by an angel from a situation that could have been fatal, on a cold winter day. In the third post (I Think I Just Saw An Angel) I talked about how God uses angels, of all types, to redirect us and keep us from getting into dangerous situations; or to keep us from wandering into a place that was never in His will for us to be. I shared my own angel story about an unknown woman who pulled me back when I was about to go ‘over the edge’.

So other than being our assistants, guides and protectors; are there any other hats that our angels wear? Yes, our angels can also be sent to comfort us in times of need. Whether we are depressed, grieving, sad, lonely, or just need some encouragement in a certain situation; our angels are there for us. When our lives are in a place that’s less than perfect we often have a tendency to believe that we’re alone in the world. Satan fills our minds with lies and questions that give us doubt and draw us further away from Jesus. “I’m alone”, “No one loves me”, “I’ve sinned too much for God to forgive me”, “How is it possible that I can go on without my lost loved one?”, “I need a mate; I can’t go on being single”, “Why doesn’t God answer my prayers?”.

Every need that we have God can and will fulfill. He will never leave us or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6 NIV84). When you think you’re alone, you’re not. When you know you can’t move on; you can and you will. When you believe that you’ve crossed the line of forgiveness; you haven’t. When you assume that He doesn’t hear you; He does. And, He sends our angels to be with us so that they can comfort us and encourage us when we need it the most. They help us get through the dark, cold tunnel and come out the other end into the warm light. Just like Satan can whisper lies in our ear; our angels can whisper comforting things in our other ear.

I had an experience one day that helped me realize this message. It was in church on a Sunday morning. At the time of the alter call, I went forward to the prayer rail. I was going through a very difficult time in my life. I felt alone and lost. I saw no hope of light in my future. I knelt at the prayer rail and talked to God, crying the whole time about my troubles. Of course, like everyone else kneeling before God at that moment, I wasn’t speaking aloud. I was praying in my heart to Him.

As I prayed, I wondered “Does He even heard me at all?”

Why did this have to hurt so much? Why does my troubles seem to be going on and on forever with no end in sight? As in most churches, when people are at the prayer rail, other members of the church family will come forward and stand behind you, with their hands on your shoulders, to pray and support you.

On this particular Sunday, once the prayer time was over, I stood up wiping my tears, ready to go back to my seat. The lady who was standing behind me hugged me and then whispered in my ear “I just wanted you to know that there was an angel standing right there in front of you”, as she pointed to the area directly in front of me on the other side of the rail. “He really does hears your prayers”, she said.

I started to cry again. How did she know what I was thinking about and praying for? I hugged her and thanked her for telling me that. I never asked her if she really saw an angel or if that was just a message of encouragement. I’ve considered, since then, asking her; but the truth is, I don’t think I want to know. Either way, God used that angel that I couldn’t see and He used this wonderful woman as another angel to send me a direct answer to my prayers. I had angels on both sides of me that day and didn’t realize it; one I could see and one I couldn’t. I thanked God for the fast reply. Even email doesn’t always get delivered that fast! Our angels are just like your favorite blanket when you need it; all warm and fuzzy, and an incredible source of comfort. God handed me my blanket that day. It kept me warm for a long time.

~~ Dear God ~~ You are so wonderful Lord. You never leave us, you make sure our every single need is met. Every tear I cry, You are there to wipe away. Whenever I feel lonely or lost, You remind me that I am loved and never forgotten. Each temper tantrum I have You calm me down and help me see that there are solutions. You do this for each and every one of Your children, Lord. Thank you so much for the warm and fuzzy angels that you give me for warmth and comfort during all these trials. Help me to never forget these things. Help me to hear the whispers of my angels more clearly; and help me to block out the lies of the enemy. In Jesus name; AMEN.

I Think I Just Saw An Angel!

by Carley Cooper

Photo by Carla Cooper
One of many Angels in my collection
All Copyrights Reserved

This is the third article in my series about Angels. In the first post (Angels From Heaven) I talked about how people in our lives can be like angels sent by God to help us. I shared a poem I wrote to someone special in my life who has been like an angel for me. In the second article (Who Is Your Guardian Angel?) I talked about how God has given us angels, celestial beings, to protect us; to keep us from danger. Sometimes, if we are paying close enough attention, we will even get to see our angels as they’re digging us out of a pit that we got ourselves into! My friend and author, Paul Duarte, experienced this first hand; literally! As a Worship Melodies Guest Author, he shared his personal true story of being rescued by an angel from a situation that could have been fatal, on a cold winter day.

Being a good friend, or rescuing us from our own messes aren’t the only purposes for angels in our lives. Sometimes they are also sent to us to assist God in redirecting our paths after we’ve wandered into dangerous territory. They help to prevent something terrible from happening in the future. I have my own angel story about a day when an angel lifted me out of a very bad place.

It happed one day, several years ago; before I was an obeying and practicing Christian; before I knew the Holy Spirit or had a relationship with Jesus. Even though I wasn’t living the life of Christianity; I did believe that there was a God, and I did believe that there was a man named Jesus who died for me. If you’ve been a regular reader of my posts for quite some time, you’ll know that I am Bipolar. I don’t hide it. I talk about it freely because more people need to know that mental illness is not something to be afraid of; but that’s a whole other blog. For that matter it’s a whole other book!

Well, one night I was in the midst of a very bad depression episode. It was one of the worst I’ve had. Today, well, I no longer go to this dark place, because Jesus has rescued me. That’s not to say that I’m totally cured... yet! Back then, though, when I was in this dark place I would pray to God. I’m not sure I ever really thought it was going to do anything for me realistically. However, when I needed it the most and I had nowhere else to turn, I figured it couldn’t hurt. Of course, back then most of my prayers were prayers of petition. I just asked for things from God either for myself or others. I never gave back to Him or worshiped Him.

As I mentioned, on this particular night in question I was at the end of my tether. I felt completely alone and I literally had no hope left inside me. I was to the point where I didn’t want to live. Even, with this in my heart, and not knowing God; I also knew that doing something desperate to myself was not the answer. I believed that no matter how bad things looked, hurting myself would only make it worse. So, for that reason I was, literally, up all night crying and begging God to let me leave this world. I begged Him “Please don’t let me see the morning light”. I figured that asking Him to do it for me, would get me out of the mess that doing it myself would cause. Of course, now that I’ve seen the light and I can think more logically, I can see the flaws in this kind of thinking.

Well, the morning came, and I was still here. With that in mind, I knew that the day must go on. My first order of business was an errand to the bank. I had a financial issue that couldn’t wait, and I had to actually go to the bank to resolve the problem. But, I got there early. It was about ten minutes before opening time. So I stood in the mall outside the bank door waiting for it to open.

Standing closer to the door, than me was an older lady with a walker. I saw her there, but I didn’t speak to her. She was short; maybe five feet tall. She appeared to be in her late sixties; and white hair that was short with large loose curls.

After a couple of minutes another lady walked in from outside. She stood next to me as though she were waiting in line for the bank as well. She looked at me like she knew me; but I didn’t recognize her as anyone that I had ever seen before. I’m not good at remembering names, but I am very good at remembering faces, so if I knew her I’m sure I would have recognized her face. She was about five and a half feet tall, and looked to be in her mid sixties. Her hair was shades of grey; salt and pepper type. It was straight and about shoulder length, curled slightly in around the bottom; and straight bangs cross the front. She was wearing a dark-red cardigan sweater and a white, or light colored, blouse.

She simply said to me “Do you have the time?”

It bothered me that she asked for the time. I don’t know why, but I felt angry and irritated. I tried not to show it though, and I looked at the time on my phone and told her what it said. After a couple more minutes, the doors to the bank were opened. All three of us that were waiting, walked into the bank. There were several tellers on duty; more than enough to serve all of us .

I was the one to walk the fastest, I am assuming, because of my younger age and much longer legs. So, I was the first in line. However... this did not sit well with the little old walker lady. She came at me practically waving that thing and rushing to the first teller ahead of me screaming “I was here first, you’re not going to butt in line ahead of me”.

It shocked me. I would not have expected that to happen. She looked so frail and sweet before. My mind was still in a state of surreal after the night I had just lived through. It took every ounce of energy that I had, plus some that I didn’t know I had, to hold back my tears and appear normal in a public place. Having a feisty old lady in front of me at the bank would normally not be something that bothered me. On a normal day, I probably would have laughed at it. That day, though; that little incident was bigger than anything else I had ever had to handle. It was enough to push me over the edge. The surprise I got literally took my breath away for a minute. I stood there with my mouth open in surprise not knowing if I should or could say anything without crying; or worse.

In that minute, the third lady standing behind me; the one who asked me the time stepped closer to me. She put her right hand on my right shoulder. I turned my head to look at her. She leaned in close to me, as if she were about to whisper something. I simply heard a soft “Shhhhh. Shhhhh”. No other words were spoken. In that instant, I felt the most overwhelming wash over my body. I felt an instant, there was a warmth and sense of peace. I stepped up to the teller, took care of my business and walked out of the bank. I went home and had a good day.

I don’t know if this lady was an angel, or just some kind old lady who was very intuitive. I did not look back as I walked out of the bank; so I don’t know if she would have still been there if I had looked back. I just know that God used her to bring me back from the edge. From the edge of what?, I have no idea. What would have happened to me, or what I may have done, or how I would have reacted if she hadn’t touched me; I do not now. Literally, God only, knows! Either way, she was an angel sent to me that day and I will be eternally grateful to both her and God.

~~ Dear God ~~ I have so many things to thank You for. You are so awesome, and Your love is so great that “Thank You” hardly seems sufficient. Thank you for the angels, of all types, that you send to rescue me. Thank you for not letting me fall into the pit of darkness where I could be lost forever. Thank you for the journey that I have travelled that has brought me into a relationship with You. I am so thankful to You that I dedicate my whole life to serving You. I am Yours. But, who am I that my sinful soul and broken body could be of value to You? Yet, it is because You gave Your Son to save me. Thank You. Please use me in whatever place that will help Your will to be done, and to advance Your kingdom. In Jesus name, AMEN.

Who Is Your Guardian Angel?

~~ Psalm 91:11-14(NIV84) ~~ For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. “Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

by Carley Cooper

Photo by Carla Cooper
One of many Angels in my collection
All Copyrights Reserved

This is the second article in my series on Angels. In my first post (Angels From Heaven) I talked about how some people in our lives are so special that we can only believe that they were sent to us by God. We know that they are real people; human beings who live on this planet with us, but they have been such a key factor in helping us at some point, that our only conclusion is that God purposely placed this individual in our life at this moment. There have been several, including my dogs, that I can look back and believe were my angels here on earth.

However, what about the traditional type of angels? That is those we see we can’t see because they’re really celestial beings. Most of us believe that we have at least one angel that is sent to protect us throughout our lives. Of course, some of us need a whole team of angels to keep us from the constant mess that we seem to have a talent for getting into. But, that’s a whole other blog! The trouble is, as I mentioned, we can’t see our heavenly BFFs (for those who were either born yesterday or never went to high school, BFF means Best Friend Forever). Imagine if we could look them in the eye every day. Think about it; we’d never be lonely, there would always be someone to give you advice, and someone to bounce an idea off of before you blurt it, out only to wish you could take it back. For the rest of your life there would always be someone to laugh at you when you fell or messed up. Plus, when you die your angel could stay behind for a day and wipe out your hard drive for you!

How do you know, with any certainty that you haven’t seen your angel? Just because we don’t see them every day, doesn’t mean that we have never seen them. There are millions of stories from people who have seen or done things that cannot be explained by mere human logic. One of these stories happened to one of my closest friends, Paul Duarte. I’ve invited him to write his story to post here as a Worship Melodies Guest Author. This is Paul’s true story!

God loves each and every one of us. In His eyes we are all celebrities. That’s why we need our divine body guards; to protect us from the underworld’s paparazzi, or worse!

Who is Your Guardian Angel?

by Paul Duarte

Psalm 23:4 (KJV) Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Once upon a time, I was working in Toronto as a self employed courier and delivery man. I had a small three ton truck and subbed work from another company in Ajax, Ontario - I was on call pretty much anytime during the day or night. One day, on a cold and drizzly afternoon in February, I got a call sometime late afternoon to make a delivery to the small town of Bracebridge, an hour and a half north of the city. The weather was miserable, the day was dark and gloomy. It had been raining all day that day - so the ground and the roads were just a clear sheet of ice.

I did not fancy the thought of going out that afternoon at all, but I needed the money, so I went anyway. I figured since I was driving a heavy vehicle, if I took it easy I would be fine. At about forty five minutes into the trip, it was late afternoon and the dark started to close in. You need to remember that in February in Ontario, it starts getting dark at 4:30 PM. It started to drizzle and ice started to accumulate on the wipers. Visibility was next to zero, but I pressed on just in case it would get worse later. I did not want to get home in the middle of the night.

The bright city lights started to fade in my rear view mirror and I found myself in the country, no houses or buildings of any kind to be seen anywhere around me. Things were going smoothly, until I hit a patch of ice on the road where the road maintenance crew had not passed by with the salt trucks yet. I swerved to the right; I swerved to the left and no response. The truck only came to a full stop when I came crushing into a ditch. I took a walk around the truck and was relieved to see that there was no damage to the vehicle. It was cold and with the wind chill, it must have been a good minus-twenty outside.

I climbed back into the cab; I laid my hands on the wheel, rested my head between my hand and I started to pray. “Father, I come to you in my hour of need. You know the situation I am in. I have no radio, if I let the truck run with the heater going, I will run out of gas and I have no money or credit card to refill and only You Father, knows where the closest station is. I will surely die frozen before I am found. If I turn off the truck to conserve fuel, the end result will be the same because I am low and I need that fuel to get back home. So I am begging you Father, hear my prayer and make a miracle happen.”

I finished my prayer; I lay down on the seat and prepared myself for the worst. Not more than fifteen minutes later, I heard a tractor with chains on, coming up the road.

I thought to myself, “What the heck! Where did this guy come from? There were no farms, no roads and no driveways for mile.”

I thought nothing more of it. I needed help and here was this frail old man, all bundled up, in a rickety old farm tractor offering to get me out. I thought there is no way; this little tractor is going to pull out a three ton truck. But he insisted that he could and proceeded to hook up the chains to the rear of my rig.

He said to me in a firm but rusty voice, “Get in, start the engine and put it in reverse slowly.”

I did as he requested and low and behold, that little tractor pulled me out without any effort what-so-ever. I was dumb founded; I could not believe my eyes.

I said to the kindly old man, “look I am sorry but I don’t have any money on me, but what do I owe you anyway. I will send you some, I give you my word.”

The old guy replied, “I believe you would, but I don’t want any money.”

I said to him, “Well there must be something I can give you or do for you.”

He said, “There is something you can do for me.”

“What is that?” I replied.”

“Simply this! Whenever you come across someone in distress like you were, stop and help them just as I helped you.” He said.

“Ok,” I said.

“Promise me,” he said.

“I promise.” I told him.

I wanted to get his number anyway, because somehow I wanted to repay him for his kindness. So I asked him to wait while I got a pen and paper from the glove box. I headed towards the cab and I heard him start up the tractor. I got the pen quickly and came out to ask him to wait, but he and the tractor was gone. Vanished into thin air! I could see for quite a long distance up the road ahead of me, and behind me; he was nowhere in sight, and there were no side roads or driveways to turn into. Where did the old man and his little tractor go? I do not know.

I made my delivery and went home. For two days, I could not think of nothing else, but the events of that night. I cannot explain this story and some may think I was crazy and delusional from the cold. Even though I prayed to God, I was not a Christian back then, nor did I believe in miracles. But I tell you, from that day forth, I began to believe.

~~ Dear God ~~ thank you for all the blessings you bring before us, when we are too blind to see them. Thank you for your words when you speak to us, even when we are too deaf to hear them and thank you for all the miracles you bring before us, even when we too busy and fail to recognize them.” Amen

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