While Working For the Church...ANGEL ENCOUNTER WITH MY GENTLE GIANT

Sometimes when you encounter angels they seem like amazing gentle giants...

This image is something I found online and it looks to be a painting.  When I have seen angels over the years, they are very tall and I have never actually seen them with wings nor have I seen them fly.  When seeing them as angels they appear rather mystical like in this image.  Angels are made of light and are not flesh and blood like us but they do seem to be very tall and large figures.  Mostly they come with a great deal of emotion.  You can feel their presence and you can feel not only their love for you but their strength.  Encountering angels in any form always gives you a great sense of being loved and protected.

In times of great danger angels have made their presence known in my life.  There are numerous occasions where I have personally experienced this phenomenon but they have been of a very personal nature so I won't share these times.  However, this experience happened when I was in my early twenties and newly married.  I was raised in a Christian Science Church and the church was a huge part of my life.  One afternoon it was my responsibly, along with a couple other church members, to man an outreach booth.  The purpose was to hand out our various pieces of literature and our Christian Science Monitor to anyone who might be interested.  Of course, part of our being there was to answer any questions about our church.  We had a table with literature spread out and were set up in the entrance of a large store.   Being there was very uncomfortable for me, not because people were asking questions but because I was extremely shy.

While there I was praying that any answers I offered would come from God within and not from my own ego.  About half-way through our time there I became aware of smelling cold, fresh water.  It cleared my nostrils and it was a lot like being in front of a clean babbling brook just after a rain.  You know that smell?  Then I felt a very large presence standing next to me.  I saw a man a lot like in the picture here.  I quickly looked around to see if anyone else was looking at him but no one seemed to notice this enormous man.  Well, being that he was rather transparent it was not a surprise that no one else saw him there.  I did and I felt his calming assurance.  I wasn't on any medication nor have I ever in my life taken recreational drugs.  I have never been diagnosed as having any physiological problems either. 

 When angels make themselves visible to you in any form they come with an undeniable presence.  It is really so difficult to explain the feeling that accompanies angels.  The angel that was with me I am assuming was my guardian angel but I really don't know.  I was wearing glasses so it was not my eyesight and I do have a very vivid imagination but this is just very different from something imagined.  I wish I knew how to explain this better.  Angels never seem to stay for very long.  They do their job and they leave.  They appear and then they are gone.  Hanging around waiting for a 'Thank You' is just not something you will find them doing.  They are messengers of God's Love and as such have no agenda nor need for gratitude.  At least that is how it has always felt to me.  

This is the last of my personal experience angel stories that I am going to share.  The next few posts will be about the different Archangels and the information I have found about them on the Internet and in different books.  Please keep coming back.  I will also be sharing more wonderful angel images.  

Continuing Story of Angel Encounters - A STORY OF FAITH

In life we all have adventures.  Some are the result of circumstances, some are pure choice, and some are a mistake that leads us down an unfortunate path.  Every day our lives are full of choices whether we are aware of them or not.  The big choices make very huge and long lasting imprints on our lives and our memories.  It is usually the choices that are mistakes that teach us the most about ourselves and our relationship with God.  During every choice and every adventure there is always an angel by our side.  WE commonly refer to this angel as our Guardian Angel but the angels reference this as the one who never leaves.  In difficult times there are usually more angels watching over and providing assistance, especially if we consciously ask for help.  

When going through something difficult the angel that is sent to help may appear in human form for a brief period of time.  This happens more than you may ever realize.  This next story happened after reaching Tampa Florida and working their for a while.  The three of us had stopped briefly in Georgia and I had been able to visit with my son and ex-husband.  Leaving there was difficult but I felt obligated to continue on with them as I had made a promise to help get their new ministry stated in Florida. The deep desire to please God and to show my love for God was a primary motivation and I felt at the time to do this I had to go to Florida for the purpose of honoring God and my personal commitment to Him.  However, some choices are just really bad mistakes and the journey gets pretty rough and confusing.  

The situation quickly became very abusive, mostly verbally, and I began to long to leave.  Confused about what was the 'right' choice to make next I set out by myself one afternoon and spent a couple hours in prayer and meditation.  

The answer came to me very clearly.  "For where your treasure is there your heart will be also."  Luke 12:34  My heart longed for my son and that was my treasure.  I really did not belong in Florida regardless of good intentions.  After arriving back at the apartment I realized I had understood this very clear directive but I was still afraid I was letting God down.  I paced in my room and asked God, "Am I letting you down by leaving here?"  Again I received a very clear answer which was simply, "I never told you to go in the first place!"  Whoa...so this whole misadventure had been the result of my own ego.  That was embarrassing but also a great relief.  I was free to leave and head back to Georgia to be with my son.  I began to pack.

Now that I had clear direction the next question was how this would unfold.  I said a little prayer, "Okay God, here we go.  Please show me what to do next."  I informed the leader of the group I would be leaving immediately and he went to the bank and brought back my share of our money which was $65.00.  I took it, grabbed my bed roll which had a couple sets of clothes, toothbrush, hair brush, and Bible and set out down the road.  Then I quickly realized I had no clue where the bus station was or which direction to walk. However, I needed to find a laundromat so I could clean my uniform from the job I had been working to return it to them in good condition.  Then I would be free to find the bus station.  I reached a crossroads so to speak and put my bed roll down to get my bearings and hopefully hear some kind of direction.  It started to rain...

So I stood there staring at the rain for what seemed just a minute or two thinking, "So this happened...now what?"  A car pulled up and stopped by the curb where I was standing.  There were three young people inside, two men and a lady.  They asked if I needed help.  I said, "Well, yes, if you could tell me which direction to walk to find the nearest bus station I would appreciate your help."  They said, "If you need to get to the bus station we will be glad to take you."  I said, "That is so kind but I must first find a laundromat to clean my uniform and then return it before I can head for the bus station."  They immediately replied, "No problem, we are headed to the laundromat right now and the bus station is on the way.  If you would like, give us your uniform and we will wash it with our things and return it for you.  Right now just jump in the back and we will take you to the bus station."  

It started to rain even harder and I felt these individuals were truly kind and helpful.  I felt deep down they where sent by God.  I gathered up my bed roll, and climbed into their back seat.  We made idle talk as they drove but all I remember is thinking they didn't appear to be angels but they certainly felt like they were.  I fished out my uniform and left it for them as they had requested.  At the bus station they insisted on carrying my bed roll in for me and waiting until I had secured my ticket to Georgia.  As soon as I had the ticket in my hand I turned to thank them but they were completely gone.  I had enough money left to get a burger at the restaurant in the station so I sat down and enjoyed a meal while waiting for the bus.  Oddly, the thought never came across my mind that I might be in danger or what would happen once I got to Georgia.  I just sat there rejoicing over a good meal and a ticket to see my son.

Once in Georgia getting off the bus I was a little bewildered not knowing what to do next.  What direction should I walk?

There as a taxi cab driver waiting at the front of the station where all the taxis lined up waiting for fairs.  This is not the man but I remember him looking a lot like this.  He said, "Miss, do you need a taxi?"  I said, "I wish I could afford a taxi, sir, as I really have no clue where I am headed from here but I have no money.  Thank you though."  We spoke for a few minutes and the next thing I knew he had me in his cab in the front seat and we were headed to a small local cafe for a bit of breakfast.  Once there we sat at the counter and a  friend of his joined us for breakfast.  His friend was a local construction worker .  Between the two of them they discussed my situation, looked at the paper for possible apartments and then decided my best option would be to call my ex-husband's house and tell them I was in town.  I did not want to do this until I had secured a job and a place to live but they insisted so I finally gave in and made the call.  My ex-husband's new wife answered the phone so I told her my situation.  She insisted in no uncertain terms that i would take a bus to their town and she would pick me up and be a guest at their home until I found a job and a place to live. The cab driver insisted he would drive me to the next town to get the better Marta connection to take to to my son's home town.  He never charged me a penny.  A couple weeks later I made a trip to the bus station to find the cab driver to thank him again and maybe buy him a meal but I never did find him.  I asked around but no one knew of him. I spent two weeks with my ex and his family and found a live-in nanny job.  I got to see my son on the weekends.  

Were the people I encountered on my journey to Georgia just very kind and helpful people or were they angels unawares?  After settled into my new job I made a call to Florida to the company where I had worked.  They said some people had dropped off my clean uniform a couple days after I left the job.  Pretty cool right?

And Then This Happened...ANGELS IN DISGUISE

Sometimes God sends angels disguised as butterflies.  This is a common consensus among those who view themselves as angel authorities.  

Maybe seeing butterflies makes us think of angels.  That could be the only connection?  

Maybe we love butterflies because the angels themselves love butterflies.  Perhaps they are kindred spirits? 

Butterflies and fairies seem to be connected...at least in the images you see of them.

Butterflies are gentle creatures and so are angels.  Perhaps it is their gentleness of nature that makes us think of the angels when we see butterflies?

Lost loved ones are known to appear or at least be connected to butterflies that appear.  Before my ex-husband passed he met a woman who was already dying of cancer.  She told him to watch for butterflies as that is how she would come back to say hello after she passed.  Just after her passing my ex said how he had seen a butterfly land on his window ledge and he instantly knew it was her saying hello.  I said, "Okay."  Then he decided that is how he would come back to say hello after he passed. I said, "Okay."  A couple years later after his passing my family reported seeing butterflies that they were sure were connected to dad.  I said, "Okay."  

Then butterflies started showing up in odd places around me.  They caught my attention and now and then one lingered and just rather stared at me or at least in my direction.  I began to wonder and I said to myself, "Okay."

And then this happened...

I was driving down the road when I realized there was a butterfly perched on my window wiper.  I wondered at first if it was dead but it turned slightly and appeared to be looking into the windshield at me.  The car was going at a good speed and I actually accelerated to see if the butterfly would get blown off.  At 65 MPH the butterfly remained on the wiper blade.  This went on for about three miles until I just had to pull over.  I pulled into an empty parking lot and stopped the car all the while watching the butterfly.  Surely I thought, it must be dead.  It was not and I got a very strange feeling as I watched it slowly turn around and face me. It stayed there for a couple minutes and appeared to be watching me as I watched it.  Then it slowly flapped its wings and turned heading up into the sky.  I got out of the car and watched as it flew higher and higher into the sky until it disappeared into the distance.

Some folks believe that lost loved ones will become angels after death that are there watching over you.  I don't know about that one.  If you go by feelings then that feeling is there that my departed loved ones are there from time to time and are watching over me.  It is a feeling.  A common saying is that if you say I love you to a butterfly it will fly off to heaven to deliver your message.  Loved ones live in your heart and come alive as you remember them and speak of them.  It could be possible that they can come to you as a butterfly just to say, "Hello, I am watching over you and waiting until we meet again."  I guess the answer lies in your own heart and mind.  What do you believe?  

I found this poem.  Isn't it lovely!

Tomorrow is another story about angels visiting unawares.  Whether it was a Divine Intervention or angels visiting I am not sure but it is a story of faith that should be told.  

AN ANGEL CAME TO MY JOB

Angels are pure beings of light and their mission is to watch over us humans. They are gentle and come as a whisper. Sometimes they do take human form when the situation is required but once they have completed their task they are gone from sight. You have probably met them at different times in your life but just didn't realize. They don't announce, "Hey, I am an angel, look at me." They are pure love as they bring God's message of love and protection. Invite your angels into your life. Thank them for their presence.

Sometimes angels are given the task of appearing in human form in order to offer their assistance even when you don't ask.  So since my last story things changed again.  The first job in health care had led to another job working in an adult foster care home.  That was a lovely experience and it ended up being a kind of ministry.  However, my son was living with his dad in Georgia and I was still in Michigan.  There had to be a way to move to Georgia.  Two individuals from the church I attended decided they would set out to Florida to begin their own church and they asked me to go with them.  I decided to go along as it would at least be an opportunity to stop in Georgia and see my son.  

This is where we ended up,Tampa Florida, and the best part was the beach, although we only went there once and just to perform baptism.  Still, it was something to remember.  The three of us had pooled all of our available funds and we piled as much of our immediate belongings into his small red car as possible.  Once there we had enough to get a small and very meek apartment to share.  We were all fasting for long periods of time so we didn't need much for food but it was necessary to get jobs quickly.  My friend Vicki and I set out walking into town to see if we could find work.  We were both hired immediately to work at an S & S Cafeteria as floor help.  This was WAY outside of my wheel house.  Carrying things without spilling them was never one of my talents.  But, it was a paycheck.  

So then this happened...

This wasn't the restaurant but it looked a lot like this on Sundays.  It was my job to work the floor and that meant doing a lot of waitressing.   Again, not my talent at all!  It didn't take long before I found myself almost in tears...overwhelmed with the confusion and my inability to handle the many full drink trays, etc.  At the point of almost shear panic a customer touched my arm as I passed by his table. He was so calm and reassuring some how. I stopped in my tracks, filled tray in hand, and stood there staring at him.  He said, "What is wrong child?"  I was stunned and not sure what to answer.  In that moment all of the noise and confusion melted away and I felt sunshine and an instant calm came over me.  I told him I was struggling with the job and he said, "It will all be fine."  I thanked him and continued to the back with my tray.  When I walked out to the front again he was gone.  I asked everyone who worked there and some of the customers near his table if they had seen where the man went and they all said they had seen no man there.  There had been two ladies there and they had just left.  No one had seen the man!  I had and I will never forget him.  He appeared and then was gone.  The rest of my time working in the restaurant did go well and things did work out in a much unexpected way.  

There is no doubt in my mind that that was an angel that i had encountered unawares...it was a feeling that I just do not know how to explain.  

There are many ways that angels will appear.  Next I will tell the story of how angels appear in yet a different form.  I do however, love to think of angels like this..

MY FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH ANGELS

Here is the story of my first encounter with angels...at least angels who appeared to me in a visible form.  They did not appear to have wings, at least I don't remember them having wings.  Their appearance was muted but they were very bright white beings as if made of pure white light.  Their countenance was one of assurance and loving acceptance, like I could do no wrong in their eyes.  This made me both comfortable with their presence and willing to listen to their message to me.  They looked rather like this...

I never got any names.  It just didn't seem necessary to ask them.  This is how it happened.  

I was in my early twenties and had not been married for long.  It had been my great pleasure and honor to go through a special training with a teacher to get accreditation to be a Christian Science Practitioner/Healer.  That had been a wonderful experience.  Besides my new husband and family there were only two things that were dear to my heart.  One was to have a child and the other was to learn as much as possible about God.  

My new husband and I had moved in with my elderly father for a brief time to take care of him after the loss of my mother.  We had to stay in the bedroom I had as a child and there were only bunk beds available.  I remember lying awake in my bunk bed, my husband sound asleep in the bed a few feet away and being surprised by an unusual sight.  Gathered around my bed appeared a group of beings that looked like pure light.  They radiated a calm and loving presence so I took it all into stride.  I did not hear actual words but understood what they were saying to me.  They were speaking of Higher Truth that I had not heard before.  I listened to them and watched them while they communicated with me.  Suddenly they were gone.  This happened a few times over the course of a couple months.  It has not happened this way since, sadly!

Listening to their words of wisdom seemed natural or normal at the time but later I began to wonder if it was my mind playing tricks or if I was just dreaming.  After every session with them I was led to either read or watch something that said the exact same things they had shared.  I took this as my confirmation that I was not losing my grip on reality but really was being visited by angelic beings.  Since this time I have encountered angels in other ways and under quite different circumstances.  I know they are always with me and speak with them every day.  Not in the way of my first encounter which was a lot like visiting a tribunal or counsel of some sort but in a very quiet and assuring way.  I do walk with my angels.

Tomorrow I will share the next major experience with angels where I literally walked with them.