ANGELS
“An angel was in my truck that morning,” said Joe.
We waited in silence to hear if Joe was going to explain. People don’t talk about angels very much these days, certainly not people like Joe. Joe didn’t tolerate silly airy- fairy nonsense. Kicked around and abused by his father as a child, he had learned to be tough in order to survive in in a brutal world. When he spoke he was blunt and opinionated. We didn’t know what to say, and we were not about to question him.
“I would have shot right through the windshield if it wasn’t for that angel,” he continued. “Cars coming from the other direction – I had no choice! This old truck was in my lane! I swerved and hit him. His full load of apples scattered all over the highway! And my semi slammed straight into the cement wall of the underpass! They all thought I was dead! But that angel held me tight back in the driver’s seat, pressed on my chest and stomach real hard. I didn’t have a seat belt on. They got me out with the Jaws of Life – crumpled metal all around me! Banged up I was; had quite a spell in the hospital. But it was like that angel kept me safe in a cocoon, like a mother’s womb. God sent an angel to save my life! That’s a miracle!”
Angels! Who believes in angels these days? Beautiful, too good to be true, wings sprouting from shoulder blades? I’ve never seen one. Have you? Joe didn’t see one either, but he believes an angel held him.
What is an angel anyway? An angel is a messenger from God. The angel that Balaam’s donkey experienced had a message for Balaam: “Don’t do this!” The angel that Mary experienced had a message: “You are going to have baby. It’s okay. This baby will be conceived in you by God. Don’t be afraid!” The angel that Joseph experienced had a message: “Get out of town – now!”
Have you ever experienced an angel? Have you ever felt a sudden change of mind? A time when your anger suddenly melted? A time when panic suddenly dissolved into peace? A time when a startling revelation made it clear to you what you should do? A time when you were frustrated, cornered, trapped and didn’t know the way out, then suddenly the tension relaxed and you knew how to handle the situation?
Did an angel visit you? Did the Holy Spirit give guidance? Did God speak to you? Does it matter? An angel is only a messenger. It is God who sends the message.
What message did God have for Joe? He sent an angel to say, “God loves you, Joe. You are precious to Him. You should die right now, but, instead, He is giving you life.”
Ask Joe’s wife, Nancy, if her husband experienced an angel. Ask his daughter, Cheryl, if her father experienced an angel. “Oh yes!” says Nancy, “he was gentle and kind to me for the rest of his life.” “Oh yes!” says Cheryl, “Dad treasured Mom after that, and stopped yelling at us all the time. He was different.”
Don’t tell Joe there aren’t any angels. He will soon put you in your place.
by Andrea Kidd
