Sheri could hardly contain herself.
She rushed breathlessly into my office early one Florida spring morning around 8. I looked up startled at her beaming face as she blurted out her story.
“Marc, my daughter came home last night from her church youth group and told us of a family that was protected by an angel! She saw a picture with a real angel.”
“What?” I seemed to remember replying.
I was a brand new Christian at that time in 1988, having been saved less than a year. But it was by all accounts the pearl of great price in my life, for Jesus the Master had invaded. Even in my sinful lifestyle that I kept for some time afterwards including living with a good looking floozy and doing light recreational drugs nightly, the Holy Spirit was relentless when no one else in the small Baptist church she and I attended had the courage, chutzpah, and bold love to confront me. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound.
But Sheri saw the change. She knew God had worked a miracle. Even as a pagan, she knew. And she wanted me to be the first to know of her daughter’s encounter that spring night. Why? Because I was weekly preaching the Gospel I knew of God’s love and judgment.
Apparently, the youth leader was a Christian counselor and knew this family in Clearwater Florida, the same town where I worked at that time. They were vacationing in Bear Lake in California when their date with destiny unfolded. I had Sheri get the counselor’s number, and he graciously sent me a copy of the picture.
Later, I called him once again and persuaded him to give me the family’s number to talk directly to them and confirm the encounter. And confirm they did. I still remember where I stood when I spoke to them in a grocery store using a pay phone. As I write this, the hair still stands up on my arm in marvel.
That copy of the picture, now laminated and in my Bible, reveals the picture date as “Feb 88,” long before the wonder of digitized photography.
The spirit world of angels, demons, principalities and powers is real. Real. Personally, I need grace to remember this every day. Since in the west, there’s little to no emphasis on this, it’s difficult to keep it in the forefront.
It was a moment in my life that I shall ever remember as a grace kiss from the Father and His Son that, obviously, I never deserved. Grace is quite something, no?! It changed my new life forever. I’ve shown the picture and told the story to hundreds of people since, both believers as well as pagans.
Years later, a friend of mine heard us tell this story and pulled out a book by Betty Malz about stories from the angelic world called Where Angels Walk. Incidentally, Betty lives in the same area that Bill and his family live! This encounter was in the book. The story follows below the picture:
Angels on Guard;
from the book Where Angels Walk, pg. 51-52
And Elisha prayed, “0 Lord, open his eyes so he may see. Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 2 Kings 6:17
Perhaps the most fascinating angelic intervention is that which occurs when other people see a figure and the protected one doesn’t see anything at all. The Bible offers several examples. The one in the quotation above describes Elisha, God’s prophet, seeing the angels clearly, but the servant seeing only the opposing army until his spiritual eyes are opened.
Author Betty Malz tells of her friend Bill (who didn’t want his real name revealed). Bill, his wife, and two children were vacationing at Big Bear Lake in California, near Apple Valley. His wife was cooking on the open fire, and Bill took several photos of the family gathered around the fire. Then he read the Bible, asking God to protect them and give them a safe vacation.
In a moment, however, their peaceful surroundings were shattered by six men on motorcycles, who seemed to roar out of nowhere. One pulled a gun, demanding that the stunned family put their billfolds and purses on the ground. Terrified, they did so, and Bill, in his haste, dropped his camera too.
All of a sudden, as quickly as they came, the men seemed to be stricken with fright. Leaving the family’s belongings on the ground, they turned, ran for their motorcycles, and sped off. Why had they gone so suddenly, leaving behind the items they intended to steal?
Confused but relieved, Bill’s family gave thanks to God for sparing them a terrible ordeal, then went on to enjoy the rest of their vacation. It was not until they arrived home and had their photos developed that they saw what the bikers had apparently seen that night.
One of the photos clearly shows the form of a white-clad angel patiently standing watch over the family as they sat around the fire.
Probably the devil’s #1 scheme in the West is to get you and I to believe he and his millions-billions of minions don’t even exist, and the spirit world is a figment of our imagination.
Not so. In the East they fully understand that all things in the physical world have their origin the spirit world. Their practice of carving, and manufacturing, all sorts of gods, deities, and supernatural fetishes is a daily reminder to them that these spirit beings need worship and appeasement. They live in fear all their lives over this.
Praise God for our freedom in Him! But the spirit world is real. And active. Satan wants you, you kids, your grandkids, you family, you church. Everyone. He wants to take all of us to the lake of fire with him.
He’s a roaring lion seeking to devour you. He’s a supernatural genius. Be forewarned. Resist him. Seek deliverance.
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Here’s another miraculous angelic protection and divine healing of a brother crushed under a 10,000 truck cab…
Please comment on this post right below. Feel free to write and proclaim your leadings in the Spirit in an honorable fashion.
Your friend and brother in fighting the good fight,
Marc
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Saints, we’re one day closer to Home, and Him! Love Him wholeheartedly!
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You may view our Archives here: THE DEVIL’S SCHEMES – ARCHIVES; Complete Archives. May our Father richly bless you with His grace, through Jesus Christ our Lord, in order to walk worthy of His name.
Please comment on this post right below. Feel free to write and proclaim your leadings in the Spirit in an honorable fashion.
Marc White, Director, Walk Worthy Ministries, www.WalkWorthy.org
Jim N says
Great story Marc. thanks for sharing. My family has a very similiar story as we were departing for the mission field back in 1986. Long story, but an angel intervened very visiablly and practiclally and my kids still talk about it including their own kids. We have all seen excesses in this kind of thing, but need to so remember what we see is but a small part of reality. People can fake stuff, but when u see and touch the reality of Kingdom of God, the fake stuff makes no difference. Reality is what it is! We just can’t see it all!
Blessings to you and your family!
admin says
thx brother Jim for your example here!
admin says
Jackie wrote: “I understand… and believe me I have never felt I can take care of myself, I rely on the Lord to protect my family emotionally, physically, and more iimportantly spiritually, through my prayers everyday. I feel his presence in everything I do. Someday I may need to see an angel or God will send an angel to aid me in some sort of dilemma, as he has to others, until then, my faith tells me they exsist and have a purpose in this world as well as the next.”
admin says
Thats a great point Jackie. For me, i had never needed to see anything, but that turned out to be a pride that i had ( i can take care of myself) . We made a decision to go overseas, and inside, i really did worry about who would take ca…re of us. Of course my head and faith rallied and helped me. After the episode our entire family experienced, i was meditating on the whole thing, and sensed the Holy Spirit letting me know, in a very concrete way that he called us to this mission and would take care of us. I think he just knew that “i needed that”, after selling everything, and putting my family on an airplaneto a very strange place with not a lot of money. Some things we just don’t learn in books….Jim
admin says
I understand… and believe me I have never felt I can take care of myself, I rely on the Lord to protect my family emotionally, physically, and more importantly spiritually, through my prayers everyday. I feel his presence in everything …I do. Someday I may need to see an angel or God will send an angel to aid me in some sort of dilemma, as he has to others, until then, my faith tells me they exist and have a purpose in this world as well as the next.
Jackie