~~ 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
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| 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.
Loved you angel story. I, too have seen an angel, actually many angels hovering over my daughter in her sick bed while she was in the hospital when she was little. I walked amongst them and they were focused on her sick little body. In the morning she was healed and ready to go home! I BELIEVE! :) I also believe in the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. I could sure use a touch from Him right about now.
ReplyDeleteThank you again-Cindy
Thank you so much Cindy for sharing that story. What wonderful encouragement! God is with you always. I will pray for you that you get that touch of encouragement from Jesus. You and your daughter are blessed. Thank you for reading, and thank you for the feedback. That article is number 3 in a series of 5. There will be number 4 & 5 published next Thursday and the following Thursday. In between on Monday's I have book reviews being published. The next angel article has another one of my own stories; about how God send me an encouraging message when I was in a very bad place in my life. Keep your chin up. God is with you. He's sent a team of angels to take care of you. HUGS.
DeleteQuestion? When you saw your angel (s), were their eyes....I don't know...When I saw this group of angels, their eyes were penetrating. I walked amongst them (I remember it like it was 5 minutes ago) and it was like they didn't see me at all, like I was not an interruption to them but they were so concentrating on my daughter...it was an experience I will never forget.
DeleteThough, I think I am am embarrassment to my family when I talk about it. lol Were any of your angels like that??
No, I got the feeling like she was looking directly at me; but she appeared to be a real person. She even touched my shoulder. The reason that I wonder if she wasn't in fact real, but an angel was because when she touched me I felt it.... a whole wash of calm through my body. The next angel, in my next story; I didn't see. Someone with me told me there was an angel there. But I was in a bad state of mind at the time, so I may not have been open to seeing one.
DeleteIt doesn't bother me when people say they don't believe; in angels or anything else. It's their choice to make whether they want the benefits, or to go to heaven or not. If they don't believe in angels, than I think they probably don't reap the benefits. If they don't believe in Jesus... they're not going to Heaven. I love my family, but I love Jesus more; so if they don't chose Him, it's their eternity to suffer with. Granted, I will always try to spread the gospel and plan a seed. But it's their choice, to accept Jesus or not. If not, then He can't make the seed grow.
This church that I was attending years ago was having some financial problems. A bus went by and this lady riding the bus asked if anyone else could see this enormous angel at the church? Everyone said no and she looked again. She said the angel was standing in front of the building literally 'holding up the church'....I get goose bumps whenever I think of that story.
DeleteI know what you mean about others not believing the angel stories. It even talks all throughout the Bible about angels and them being with us. I say, either believe it all or nothing.
Wow! That is an awesome angel story! Sometimes I wonder how many are really all around us. If we could only see them all, I'll bet they out number people on the earth by a long shot! I have a friend that was driving home from Florida all the way back to where we live in Barrie, Ontario (just north of Toronto). She was very nervous about it because the car was old, but she had to drive it back for her Dad. Unknown to her, was that her best friend knew she was nervous and prayed and asked God to let her see angels surrounding the four corners of her car protecting her. Well, she saw them. Four angels with long gowns flowing in the wind on each corner of her car.
DeleteAs for the skeptics in the group well, the bible can prove itself on every point it makes. Even science can back up bible stuff. Many people don't know it but there is evidence that backs up the creation story of the bible. I've done a short course on it at my church and it's fascinating! If people chose to reject it well they're locking themselves in a box and it's their choice. Christianity, I've learned is not the restrictive life I thought it was before I was Christian. It's in fact freedom. And with that freedom comes clarity. Some just choose to deny it because they think it means they have some kind of control over something.
An old friend told me a similar story of angels being all around her car but her husband/boyfriend (can't remember which) was driving and giving her a heck of a time about something and she was feeling down and out and she looked up and saw this angel beside her side of the car and the angel was winking at her. My friend looked away (she thought she was seeing things) and looked back again and the angel kept up the speed of the car and would smile and wink at her as if to encourage her and make her smile. lol When my friend told me the story, it even made her smile when she told me. LOL We both laughed about it; THAT sounds like something off the wall the Lord would do!
DeleteCindy :-D
I could listen to these stories all day! I love them.
DeleteI heard a story once about a baby girl that used to laugh all the time, even when she was alone playing in the living room. Her parents weren't sure what was up. They asked her what was so funny, and she just said "the man with the funny hat". As this baby grew older, she could still see her angel with her and would have lots of long conversations with him. One day he told her that when she was a baby he used to put on a funny hat and make her laugh. That's when her parents believed her because they had never told her about that incident as a baby and she was too young to remember it. When she was about to hit teenage years he told her that she wouldn't be able to see him anymore but he would be there. I love that story.
I've read that we can talk to our angels and even ask them to do stuff for us and they'll do it.
I like that smiling and winking thing. That sounds to me like something God would do too. I'm positive that God has a great sense of humor. Besides; we're made in His image and we have a sense of humor... ehh... well, most of us. lol.... so I know God does too. Every now and then when I end up in some embarrassing situation I will look up and God and say "I suppose You think this is funny, don't you?!" Cause sometimes that's what it feels like. lol
LOL When my girls were little and couldn't speak plainly yet, they would walk way around the corners of the house (inside) and say 'excuse me'. I asked my daughter one time who she was talking to and she said the angels who were all around the house, in the kitchen. I, of couse looked over to the corners of the kitchen and it always made me check the corners to see if I could see any of them. I started making wide corners too, just in case. lol
DeleteLOL Oh my gosh, that's so funny! Wow, my little apartment can't fit too many people. It's only 500 sq ft. Very nice... but very small. They must be tired of ducking out of my way by now. lol
DeleteLOL Thank you! It has really been nice talking with you today! I hope to talk to you again! It made me "smile" and I have really been needing that!
DeleteGod bless you and yours and remember Angels come in all sizes so they CAN fit in your snug little apartment! LOL :-)
LOL You're welcome; and thank you too. I hope we get a to talk again too. Hugs.
DeleteWhile serving in Vietnam, unknown to me at that time, the Vietcon had put out a "Wanted Dead or ALIVE" Poster on me for $25.000 Piasters. Three of the Vietnamese workers we had hired to build the Second School for the Blind in all of South Vietnam, were arrested who had set me up to be killed that day., just a few hours before I was to be killed. I believe angels were watching over me. The wanted p[osters were found on them. This is a true story! God Bless Everyone! Vic.
ReplyDeleteWow. Vic that's an awesome story! I'm glad that they saved you; 'cause otherwise you and I wouldn't have connected on here. I've heard other stories about angels helping to fight in military and war situations. It amazes me how God can organize everything and keep it all straight. lol
DeleteCarley, that is a neat experience - and thank you for sharing it! Hug
ReplyDeleteThank you Kasey. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I will be sharing another one in my next article in the series. There's 5 articles total in the series. One next Thursday, and the last one the following Thursday. In between on Monday's I have some book reviews that I've done being posted. I'm having fun doing this. Thanks for reading, and I so very much appreciate the feedback. It lets me know that people are really reading my articles.
DeleteI've had the opposite. I've seen His angels helping me along the way when I have gone somewhere! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks Janet for reading; and I so very much appreciate the feedback. This article is the 3rd one in 5. In the next 2 weeks there will be 2 more. But the 2nd on is called 'Who's Your Guardian Angel?'. Since your angels have helped you, than you might be interested in reading my 2nd article. In that one I had my friend write his story about how an angel helped save him one day when his truck went off the road. Again, thank for sharing.
Deletehttp://worshipmelodies.blogspot.com/2012/02/who-is-your-guardian-angel.html
I've heard so many stories thru the years of angels helping ppl in time of need. God truly is good and merciful. Carly I would love for you to msg me your website. Follow me on facebook Teresa Hooley Slack and I'll follow you back.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Teresa! I feel so blessed every time someone says that they like my articles. It's very humbling. This is my own little ministry, and sometimes I wonder if anyone is hearing me. Then I get great messages like yours. Thank you for reading; and thanks for the feedback. It helps me to know that I'm still headed in the right direction. Hugs.
DeleteI have never experienced the presence of an angel, but I do believe in them. I did experience a night like yours on more than one occasion where I wanted to die and pleaded for God to let it happen so that I did not need to do it to myself. It could be that He sent angles to care for me, and I just was not aware of them. I look forward to reading your coming stories.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I know for sure, is that God is taking care of us. He has great plans for you and for me. Praise God that He didn't answer those prayers in the way we wanted at the time for either of us!
DeleteThanks for sharing that lovely storey.
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome. I hope it helps you or blesses you. HUGS.
DeleteExcellent!... Thank you!
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome. I hope it helps you or blesses you. The comment you made on the last article in the series; helped me decide to increase it to 5 instead of four in the series. Thanks. HUGS.
DeleteI have a story ot share of devine intervention. I was at a christian festival in Central PA one year. My group of was having a hard time getting the charcoal lit to make dinner (camping situation). I stepped in and doused the coals with lighter fluid as I had seen my husband do many times. As I touched the lighter to the coals I litterally felt myself being pulled back away from the grill I was stooped over, by my shoulders. It was like I had someone grab me and pull me backwards. As I was pulled the flames shot up really high from the grill. They would have burned me very badly as there was no way I could have moved that quickly on my own! I thank God and the angles that were watching over me that day. Althought I did not see an angle that day, I certainly felt one.
ReplyDeleteCOUNTRYCLUCKER - Thank you so very much for sharing your story! That is an incredible experience! Praise God that He knows when to rescue us from ourselves! I'm so happy that you weren't burned. HUGS!
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