Our Angels Deserve So Much Credit

I am so grateful that God constantly doles out His mercies for giving me daily content for my blog. On Thursday, he doled out His mercies to me as I was making my way to Austin to spend a few days with my children. I try to leave by 6 am to beat the Dallas traffic but the rain, all the way to Austin, slowed me down. Thank God it did. As I arrived in Waco, the flow of traffic going southbound was at a stand-still. Eventually, I turned my engine off and waited. I googled the issue and found “Southbound lanes closed on I-35 due to muti-vehicle accident. Traffic could be stalled up to an hour until vehicles are removed." I prayed “Lord please help those involved.” And, as I prayed that simple prayer, I realized, that the rain had helped me to NOT be in that pile up. Thank God for His tender mercies AND, thank God for my angels and the many times that I know, without a doubt, that angels were on duty for me. So why haven’t I given them more attention AND shown more appreciation to them for taking such good care of me?

As I start to write this blog, I remember the old song: “All night, all day, Angels watching over me, my Lord. All night, all day, Angels watching over me.” Wow! Appearances of angels in the Bible and even, today, we hear stories about the occurrence of angels in people’s lives. Why don’t we give them more attention, and for that matter, more gratitude for their presence in our lives? I have been reprimanded big-time as I write this blog. I am so sorry, my dear Guardian Angel. Now, I’m brought back to remembrance of those times when I know, without a shadow of doubt, my Guardian Angel was on duty for me.

It must have been my angel who came between the other car and mine when I was almost run into. I know it was my guardian angel keeping watch over me when I nearly drown at a young age. Or when an angel kept me from falling many times. And, the times that I did fall, my angel must have cushioned the fall because I have never had any broken body parts. I humbly ask for forgiveness for failing to express gratitude to my angels. Or when an angel, just recently, stood in the way of a semi-truck that almost, within inches, hit my children’s vehicle and RV.

I’ll never forget this story from my now 19-year-old grandson’s baby-sitter who fessed up about an angel showing up when she baby-sat Payton. She held the story in for so long. She shared: "When I was 11 years old, I was taking care of Payton who was only about one year old. I was feeding him goldfish crackers, when all of a sudden, he started choking. I patted him on his back, raised his hands in the air, but nothing seemed to help. He started turning blue. I was crying and so afraid, when all of a sudden someone burst into the room and stuck their finger into his throat and pulled out the cracker. Payton quickly recovered and was just fine.” She cried and cried as she told her Mom the story later that night. Her mom was with us the night she shared that story with us. She went on to share how sorry she had held that story in so long, but as she saw Payton serving God and being such an amazing servant that she knew God's hands were on him and just had to share the story.

I’m sharing this blog today, to voice my gratitude to my Guardian Angel and all other angels who have been assigned and on-duty for me far more than I can imagine, I’m sure. Their hands have been full as I’m not much of a sit-down-and-do-nothing kind-of-gal. Perhaps, I’m also writing this blog as a love-letter from God to remind YOU to give credit to where credit is due in your life, also. Maybe God is raising our spiritual antennas to recognize where thanksgiving and praise is due.

“For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways.” (Psalm 91:11).
”For it is written, ‘He will command His angels concerning you to guard you carefully.’” (Luke 4:10)
”The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them.” (Psalm 34:7)

I Am My Beloved’s and He Is Mine

Please indulge me as I’m still living in the precious moments of my recent Holy Lands' trip. I spent most of yesterday going through my journal and taking note of God's special blessings. Needless to say, I felt so wrapped up in God’s love because of so many incidents that brought heaven to earth to me. I read the words just before I left on the trip: "I know You are with me -- guiding, directing, keeping my feet on the pathways you are leading me on -- safe and protected! I AM YOURS AND YOU ARE MINE!" Just look at how those words played out!

First of all – just being able to go on this trip with my dear friends, Charles Michie and Sheila Michie, who were my loving guardian angels – yes, I need double-duty from angels (those in the spirit realm and in the natural). LOL! Because they had flown out a couple of days earlier to Rome, I went it alone until I flew into Houston to meet the other travelers. Of course, God, in His loving kindness, provided me with angels there – dear Tony & Ruby Urbina. There was a divine connection the moment we met. It sincerely seemed like a “match made in heaven” for us. They were my Houston to Rome angels. They wouldn’t leave me for a minute. Tony would lead the way and say "Come on, Babies!" What a blessing they were to me, and then we met up with Mick and Sheila in Rome. They looked out for me in so many ways! We had so many laughs -- especially when we decided to go it alone in Rome, apart from our tour group. When Mick told Sheila and I to hide our name tags because we didn't want others to think we were tourists, Sheila and I fell apart laughing so hard. We had our cameras, our handbags and we were looking at a map -- so do you think we DIDN"T look like tourists without those name tags? LOL!

On the way home on Saturday, in the Frankfurt airport, our time was short, considering the long security checks at several different areas. When our last check came up, my carry-ons were held up. One, because I left a water bottle in one bag, and my computer in the other. Oh me. That delay certainly created some anxiety because our flight departure was soon. Mick and Sheila wouldn’t leave me. I told them to go ahead but they refused. They said “If you’re missing your flight – so will we!” Now that’s love. My bags were checked, and of all things, both were detected for explosives! Here came the police with their firearms. This cute policewoman (pictured below) sure eased my concern with her smiles and good English. Eventually I was released with time to spare and my buddies were there to hustle through with me.

Early on in our journeys, I told about the sweet couple that gave me a necklace "from my husband". That was special enough, but "the love" just kept coming. When I walked into a store just outside our hotel in Jerusalem, one of my fellow travelers called me over to look at a necklace he'd found for his wife who had to stay at home. They both are doctors. I was giving him my “two thumbs up” agreement with his decision, when the shopkeeper asked me for my ring size. He came back with this ring, pictured here. It is inscribed, in Hebrew, “I am my beloved’s and he is mine” – the scripture from Song of Solomon 6:3, and the words I wrote in my journal BEFORE leaving home. Of course, the tears flowed like a fountain because my Lord came through for me as I reminded Him in the beginning "I AM YOURS and YOU ARE MINE" and I knew, both He AND my sweetheart were with me on this journey. There were just too many set-ups. Indeed my Father does love the widows so much, that He continues to pour out blessings I can hardly contain. While I thought of the sweet love I had with my husband, I know that this ring represents the many ways that I belong to Jesus. I am my beloved’s by the gift of His purchase of me, paid by His own life; I am His by surrender, because I gave myself to Him. I am His and He is mine now and for all eternity.

You, too, are His beloved and He is yours. Just believe it, give Him your life and receive His love. I promise you, THAT love doesn't disappoint!