Our Inheritance

I have always loved wild flowers more than the ones we grow in our gardens and I think this is the reason why.

No matter how dry or infertile the soil, no matter if rain falls or not, no matter how hot the sun, wild flowers bloom in wild abandon somehow unfailingly cared for by some unseen Gardener’s hand.

The flowers I plant in my garden on the other hand, seem to need constant pampering and attention which , in my case at least, never seems to be enough. And if I turn my head away for a day or two and the weather conditions are less than perfect they hang their blooms and leaves and die more easily than they live!

I have come to the conclusion that God has done that on purpose wanting man to see that what He does is perfect and when He speaks we can trust that it will come to pass. He did not say He would care for us as we care for our garden flowers. He said He would care for us as He cares for the wild flowers that are perfectly healthy and happy – as well as beautiful - in the most adverse growing conditions.

I was reminded of a verse in Psalm 2 this morning that encouraged me in spite of the discouraging conditions of the world around us. If we look at the failing economy, the shaky financial institutions , the ever increasing threat to our moral standards and values and to our expression of them , the threat to our personal safety from criminal or terrorist activity, then we have every reason to feel like a flower in my garden that is fearfully dependent on my ‘notsogreen’ thumb for survival .

BUT… what does Psalm 2:7,8 have to say to us ?

The familiar words of verse 7, "You are my Son , this day have I begotten you" …. quoted in Heb. 1:5 make it clear that in those Psalm 2 verses we have God the Father speaking directly to Jesus , His Son.

He is promising to Jesus His inheritance, which is … “I will give you the heathen and the uttermost ends of the earth !”

Do you think the same God who gardens with such faithfulness the wild flowers would be unable to deliver on His inheritance promise to Jesus ? I think not!

The promise He made to Jesus is also made to us as the followers of Jesus.. His inheritance is also our inheritance!

Col 1:12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.

What does this inheritance entail ? What is it exactly that we have been given the right to and the power to receive ?

In Deut. 20:14 God gives His people instructions on how they are to deal with ‘cities that are afar off’ .. He says that they are to take from them all the plunder that they could productively use, as well as take the women and children as their own. Interestingly, they were to kill all the males. Why would this be?

Males represent power... and so God's people were not to allow something that would have power over them. God was to be the only authority in their lives.

The ‘cities that are afar off’ represent the world. We have this given to us in Acts 2:39 in the first sermon preached by Peter in his words… “and this promise is to you and all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call”

The words ‘afar off’ and the ‘cities afar off’ do not parallel by accident. Just as the OT ‘cities afar off’ referred to the heathen in the OT world, so also the words “afar off” in Acts are speaking about God reaching out to the heathen in the world to whom the promise of salvation was being extended.

So we see that God has given to Jesus and to us the ‘plunder of the world’ as our inheritance. Whatever we need for our livelihood or our ministry is ours to freely take … and the best plunder, of course , are the souls that we take ‘out of the world’ and bring into God’s Kingdom.

Did you ever stop to think that that is our inheritance?? That as citizens of God’s Kingdom we have the right and ministry to take from the world that which rightfully belongs to God and claim it for His everlasting Kingdom?

I love that God calls it our ‘inheritance’ . No one need fight for an inheritance – it is simply given by the one who names the recipient.

An inheritance can be squandered or used selfishly. That is not to be the attitude of God’s children. We are to be known by our attitude of love. We are to use our inheritance for the glory of God and in such a way that we will be recognized as children of God !

If the inheritance is ours by God’s Word, then the conditions around us in a crumbling world hold no terror for us, though they may threaten! What God has given us to do will never be hindered nor our opportunities be diminished !

So if God gave Jesus .. (and by extension to His followers and brethren) the 'heathen and uttermost parts of the earth as our inheritance does that not mean that we SHALL have it ?? surely God can pass on to us what He has decreed to be our inheritance !

So that means that no matter what happens in the world around us ... we shall take from it what belongs to God's Kingdom ... and that is our work and our calling and our ministry and our joy !!!

Under New Management

In my travels yesterday, I passed a restaurant that had a huge sign outside announcing,

“Under New Management!”

I was not familiar with the old , therefore I had no reference point on which to judge the new.
But I wondered…….. What changes would come to the ‘under new management’ restaurant?
Would the décor change? The atmosphere? The staff? The service? The food menu? The presentation? The prices?

And as I was thinking there flashed through my mind the analogy to a human life… “Under new Management”.

I thought of Mary Magdalene, a friend of Jesus when He physically walked this earth.
We don’t know a lot about her… but we can easily read between the lines.
She belonged to a well-known, financially secure family in Bethany. She had a brother named Lazarus and a sister named Martha.

We are not told what went wrong in her life, what caused her to become involved with the darkness to the point where she was possessed with seven demons. We know her past only because of one small inserted detail in reference to her - “out of whom came seven demons”. (Luke 8:2)

We can only imagine what her early life was like - what horrors of torment seven demons possessing her body would have inflicted upon her. Did they drive her from her home or did Lazarus and Martha try to keep her hidden. How did Mary -and her family- deal with the shame and fear and evil that ruled her life?

Then came the day that Mary met Jesus ! A glorious day in which a few authoritative words from Jesus set her marvellously free !! She was suddenly “Under new management” !!
And what a difference it made.

We see Mary among those who followed Jesus as He went from every city to every village teaching about the kingdom of God. (Luke 8:1,2)

We see Mary taking a pound of very costly oil of spikenard anointing the feet of Jesus and wiping his feet with her hair ….filling the house with fragrance. When Judas Iscariot expressed his annoyance that the oil had not been sold and giving to the poor, Jesus , knowing he was a thief , rebuked him saying…. “Let her alone.” (John 12:7)

We see Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus drinking in every word He spoke, oblivious to the practical needs of the guests in her home. When her sister Martha complained that Mary was not helping her…. Jesus gently rebuked Martha . He acknowledged that Martha was troubling herself with much serving, but praised Mary for having chosen the good part that would not be taken away from her. (Luke 10:42)

We also see Mary at the crucifixion scene ….watching from afar. (Matt. 27:55,56) Was she watching from afar because her heart was breaking to the point she could not bear to watch and yet could not walk away?

We also see Mary watching to see where they laid Him … so that the next morning she and other women could return to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared for His body.
Mark carefully records that it was Mary Magdalene who was the first to see Jesus after His resurrection , and she was the one to told the others. ( Mark 16:9)

‘Under new management’ for Mary meant the difference between life and death… between being ruled by darkness or blessed by Light….. being hated or being loved !
Jesus said “He who is forgiven much ,loves much!” We see this truth reflected in the life of Mary. She loved Jesus with a whole heart and basked in His love for her. Her life had but one focus… to be close to the One who spoke words of love and life and freedom.

You and I also have experienced coming ‘under new management’ when we passed from from the kingdom of the evil one to the Kingdom of God.
When we were born again our lives were gloriously changed because now we are under the ‘management’ of the Holy Spirit. Are we like Mary ? Are we so filled with gratitude and love toward the One who has freed us to live in the glory of His love and light that we care for little else ?

Do we “walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God? “ (Col. 1:10)
Do we continually “give thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light?” (Col. 1:12)

Have you been thankful today that you no longer serve the god of this world.. but that you are "under new management" ? Grateful that “He has delivered (you) from the power of darkness and translated (you) into the kingdom of the Son of His love” ? (Col.1:13)

And do people notice under whose 'management' you are ?

**

Rose-Coloured Glasses

For most of my life I have been accused of viewing my world through rose-coloured glasses…. especially by my husband who by his own admission is a ‘realist’ – meaning he purposely views his cup half full so he won’t be disappointed! (smile)

My favourite sun glasses ARE rose tinted .. and you know !! The world DOES look prettier through them. So I love to wear my sun glasses and enjoy the rose-enhanced beauty around me.

I was thinking about this today since it was a ‘sun-glasses’ kind of day !

And I thought about how differently people view their world… some people look for the clouds, the rain, the dismal skies… while others seem to always find a cheery outlook, able to see ‘liquid sunshine’ in the raindrops.

Sometimes it is simply the temperament they were born with, sometimes it may be a conscious choice about how they perceive their day’s contents… but for the Christian, I believe, there is a higher road in the spiritual Kingdom.

The bible encourages us to wear ‘rose-colored’ glasses …. They are called Thankfulness lenses.
Stop and think… how hard is it to be glum or disappointed or angry or disgruntled when you are feeling thankful !
Which comes first … the thing for which you are thankful ? or the choice you make to find it ?
No matter how bad things look… no matter how easy it would be to just tumble into Gloomville….. is there not always something that fills your heart with thankfulness if you just let your thoughts focus on it ?

Whether it is little annoying things that are messing up your day or whether it is bigger problems that threaten to overwhelm you … thankfulness can lift the weight of the burden and shrink it down to something you can barely feel on your shoulders.

There is an interesting passage --- or path --- laid out in Romans 1.

The destination this path leads to is described in verses 29,30 – “ filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness, they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God , violent , proud, boasters, inventors of evil things , disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful…”

WOW! who would EVER chose to take one step along a path leading to that place??

Work back to the beginning of the path in verse 21 and you will see that the very first step is unthankfulness which is linked to not glorifying God !
Once this step has been taken the others follow step after step… unthankfulness leads to futile thinking … which leads to … foolish hearts that become dark…. And in the dark it is hard to see where one is going !!!

How often we are tempted to be unthankful. If we find our foot poised to take this first step …. let us consider where the path ultimately leads….and quickly turn our feet back to reflect on the many things in our life we can be so thankful for and let us lift our voices to God in praise!!

And let us also encourage others around us toward thankfulness !

Psa 100:4 “Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.”

the Kingdom of Heaven

Our summer here is over, summer holidays have come and gone and everyone has settled into the fall/winter routine of work and school.

Holidays are an important part of people’s lives and for some what they look forward to all year. A lot of research and planning goes into determining where they will go and the more information they have about their place of destination the more prepared they are and able to enjoy their holiday to the fullest.

If you do not know the laws and customs of a foreign country in which you plan to travel, it can quickly spoil your trip … or worse get you into serious trouble !!

I once sewed a wardrobe for Helen, a young lady giving her life to foreign missions. She was going to a tribal village in Africa. I had to sew all her skirts and dresses to hang well below her knees…because it was considered extremely obscene for a woman to show her knees, while it was perfectly okay for her to go topless.
My daughter’s friend travelled to the Middle East with her husband. It was a hot day and she was enjoying the day in shorts and a t-shirt. She became increasingly annoyed at the lewdness of the Middle East men who came up to her to pitch her bottom. She didn’t understand until she was told that in that country only prostitutes dressed like she was dressed. With her French dark complexion, brown eyes and black hair she looked the part perfectly!

It is important to familiarize yourself with the laws and customs of a foreign country before you visit – because you will have no recourse if you disobey them….your laws at home have no jurisdiction over the laws of another country.

I am sometimes befuddled at how carefully people plan their temporary vacations that last for a couple of weeks, but pay so little heed or attention to a destination spot that presumably everyone wants to go to … the Kingdom of Heaven.

If we were to check out the brochures that advertise this out-of-this-world paradise what would we learn about it?

Jesus Himself wrote the brochures and puts the information in word pictures.
He tells us what the Kingdom of Heaven is like, what is important for us to know if we are planning to journey in this Kingdom.

*****

The Kingdom of origin was so elevated in the heavens and of such extreme living conditions that it was impossible for any citizen of the kingdoms of earth to even think of making it a place of destination.

So the kindly Father King of the Kingdom of Heaven found a way to super-impose it upon the very earth that people found so compatible with their needs.
It became a secret Kingdom…. here but also there…..real but not seen…. spiritual but not physical.
The beauty and goodness of the kingdom is allowed to grow together with the weeds and tares of the kingdoms of this world.

It is a kingdom that started very small.
Its influence in the earth’s kingdoms barely noticeable when it first came but it began to grow and spread until it could not be ignored….not unlike the tiny mustard seed …from the small herb family yet it grows into a tree large enough for birds to nest in.

It is a kingdom that has permeating influence. Where the kingdom is - everything around it is influenced.
The Kingdom of heaven by virtue of its presence brings goodness and mercy and kindness that multiplies like leaven even in a sinful evil world.

Because it is a secret, invisible Kingdom….it can be easily over looked. People can walk right past it and never notice but there is always this one or that one who catches a glimpse of the treasure this kingdom holds.
He sees it buried in a field and rushes out to sell everything he has to buy the field with the treasure of the Kingdom.
There is nothing of value in the kingdoms of this world that can compare with the treasures of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Finding it is like finding the very valuable pearl that a merchant has been searching everywhere for. How gladly one gives up everything …to grasp hold of that one priceless jewel!!!

There are men and women who are secret agents in this kingdom.
They search out those who are interested in learning about the King and His Kingdom, those who are looking for purpose and meaning in their lives . With these pilgrims they share wonderful treasures, old and new from the storehouse of knowledge of Truth that belong to this Kingdom.

The Father King is so eager to bring as many as possible into this Kingdom of His that he sends out huge dragnets that bring people in. Sadly, even though they have been compelled to come in, not all want to stay and are cast out, forever separated from those who do.

In this Kingdom of Heaven there is no unemployment… no touristy activities.
Everyone who comes into this Kingdom must work and the wages are determined by the Father King himself - no union rules apply here.
Some may think the wages unfair.
Those who work least are paid as much as those who labour long and hard. But the Father King’s word is final…and his judgments are true and just.

The Father King also demands that his example be followed by all who journey in His Kingdom.
He is a Ruler of great mercy, forgiving freely those who find themselves in trouble. If someone in his kingdom refuses to extend this same mercy to others he is swiftly brought to judgment and punished accordingly.

There is something beautifully romantic about this Kingdom of Heaven.
It is all about a love story, that will culminate in the marriage of the Father King’s Son.
The Father King is wanting many to come and be part of this wedding but will only allow those to come who wish it with their whole hearts.
Like the ten virgins, only five were whole hearted …the other five were not diligent to do all they could to make themselves ready.

The Son who the Father King gave the rule over this kingdom, is not presently visible.
He has gone away on business and has left his servants in charge of the kingdom.
Some are faithful and are doing everything they were instructed to do but others are a disgrace to the Son and are taking liberties with their freedom and are living for their own indulgences. They are tarnishing the reputation of this glorious Kingdom and will be in trouble when the Son returns.
So it is important that when you are travelling in this Kingdom that you are careful to discern who are the true servants of the King…and who are not.

The wedding feast is yet to come…. All is almost ready…. The Son could return at any time to take his bride and the celebrations will begin.
Then the Kingdom of heaven will no longer be a secret, invisible Kingdom but one that is once again lifted to high places and its glory will be visible to all!!

I am a citizen - a secret agent- of this Kingdom of Heaven….. are you ????

(based on Matt.13, 18, 20, 22, 25)

Dreams of Heaven (part 2)

Rebecca Ruter Springer was an American who went on a two year tour of Europe to improve her health. While there in 1870 she became very ill and lay in a coma for several days, during which she had a vision or dream of heaven. She describes her dream in wondrous detail in her book Intra Muros ( my dream of heaven).
I love the book. I bought a copy years ago and it inspired me to envision what heaven will be like.
She speaks of the mansions prepared for each person… hers had perfect roses strewn over the floor…yet when she walked on them they were not crushed. She could walk into the beautiful lake …the water a perfect temperature.. she did not get wet and she found to her amazement that she was able to breath underwater. She describes how , even when she was underwater, she heard the rippling melodious sounds of the bells coming from all directions and harmonizing as they came together…. calling her to worship, her favorite time of day.
The fruit hanging on the fruit trees was ripe for her to enjoy .. she could just reach up and pick it any time, enjoying the sweet taste , the juice running over her hand and down her dress but leaving no sticky residue or stain.
She adds a disclaimer in her account of the dream that she does not mean for it to be used as ‘doctrine’ but as a comfort and inspiration.

The apostle Paul writes about his vision of paradise (II Cor. 12:2) …. but he was not able to repeat the indescribable things he heard and saw.
I am so curious to know what he experienced there and I have sometimes wondered why God doesn’t give us more details of what it will be like… but maybe He delights in keeping it as a wonderful surprise. Don’t we love planning surprises for our loved ones? Maybe that is a God-characteristic… and He gives us just enough to whet our appetites and stir up our desire to be there !!

My granddaughters and I have had many good conversations about God and heaven , a favorite subject of theirs since they were very young.
When my youngest granddaughter , Elora , was four years old she informed me one day that she had had a dream about heaven.
She said , “You and Opa and I went to heaven to celebrate God’s birthday. Some of the people there did not have angel clothes and I told God that my Nanna could sew them clothes. There was a sewing machine there and God said, ‘That would be good for Nanna.’
Then He healed your hands , Nanna, so that you could sew. And then you made clothes, just like the angels wear, for all the people who didn’t have any !” .

At first I was a little disappointed to think that perhaps I would have to work in heaven !! But then I realized that sewing in heaven would be a delight – the machine would never break down, the thread would never break, I would never make a mistake… and sewing angel clothes would definitely be a job I would love !!
( at the time she had the dream, I was in a very severe Rheumatoid Arthritis flare and could not use my hands)

Having just recently started my blog, I had been praying, hoping that God could perhaps use it to bless someone, ... but I was feeling some trepidation thinking about what I had started !

Then a few days later my older granddaughter , Elise, told about a dream she had.
She said, “I dreamed that I went to heaven… but heaven was at Nanna’s house.”
Her mother asked her if she saw Jesus there.. She replied , “Yes, but He was typing on the computer.”

I do know that heaven will definitely be better than my house… so don’t worry !! You won’t be coming here when you die!
But I do think about that now … Jesus sitting in my computer chair with me…. and I pray that He inspires my thoughts.

We went to a funeral today for a man named John ( from my husband’s side of the family).
We learned that John had told his family he did not think he would live to see his 90th birthday which was only a couple of months away. He told them about a vivid dream that he had had. In this dream he had been sitting on a bed talking to his son.
(This son , while still a teenager, died of leukemia many years ago.)
Shortly after he spoke of this dream, John had a stroke and died , at peace - and leaving a wonderful heritage for his family who all spoke of a father, grandfather and great grandfather whose life reflected his love for God and others.

I don’t believe that dreams about heaven, our own or someone else’s should be taken as presenting literal facts to cement our concept of heaven… but simply to open the door to let our imagination fly out on wings far beyond the limits of this world as we know it.
This isn’t a dream but I’ll share it anyway because I loved it when I heard it… I was listening to a scientist speak and he explained that our physical eyes are limited to seeing only a small portion of the color spectrum. He said he believed that in heaven we will be able to see the complete spectrum , which means we will see many more colors than we see here… colors we could not imagine. He also spoke of us being able to hear colors and see sounds.

Oh… how exciting it will all be !! Much as I love my life here…. I love knowing that as I get older… the best is yet to come ! I am but getting closer to LIFE as I have never experienced here !!

“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” I Corinthians 2:9

Heaven on Earth?

If you knew with absolute certainty that at some point over the next few years you would either win the world’s largest lottery or be caught in an earthquake measuring 9.5 on the Richter scale… how consumed would your thoughts be planning for these events? I would guess your answer would be ‘quite a lot’.

We all know that at some point in our life we will pass through death’s door ( guaranteed!! ) and we will begin our eternity ! We know there are two possible destinations, heaven or hell. If I ask you how consumed you are with thinking about or planning for this event , I would guess that your answer would range from ‘not much’ to ‘as little as possible ‘ or ‘not at all’.

People spend more time and effort planning for their retirement or even for a summer two week holiday , than they do thinking about their eternity and I am sometimes puzzled by this common mind-set. I am inclined to think it is partly because ‘our death’ is not something we like to think about , but I wonder if the biggest deterrent is simply that we know so little about it. When is the last time you heard a sermon on heaven? I was trying to remember the last time I heard one and I really can’t remember ….it was a very long time ago.

So why don’t we talk about heaven? Because we are too comfortable in this life? Or feel there are still things we need or want to do? I agree with the apostle Paul… “I am twixt and between… to go be with the Lord is awesome ! but I am still needed here.” The really neat thing is …. that even if my time here is prolonged , my eternity will not be shortened by one iota of a second !!

When I was a child my idea of heaven was a place that was rather misty filled with fluffy white clouds. One each cloud sat a person strumming a harp. Because of the mist and because I thought we were a ‘spirit being’ , I didn’t really think we could see each other and even if we could we would not recognize anyone.
That picture has no resemblence to what the bible tells us heaven will be like.

When we are specially enthralled with something we describe it as ‘heaven on earth ‘! I don’t know where that expression came from but do you know that it is actually accurate??? Heaven really will be on earth!!
The bible is actually very clear… In Revelation 21 we read the beautiful words of John’s vision describing the new heaven and the new earth that God will create. The heaven referred to here is not God’s domain where He dwells, but the stratosphere above our earth.
We read in II Peter 3:7 that the heavens and earth we know today will be destroyed by fire in the day of judgment, but we also read in Psalm 104:5 that the foundations of the earth will remain forever. On the foundations of the cleansed old earth, God will create a new earth on which His bride (true believers) will live forever !!

Does that not change how we think about heaven? It will not be an airy-fairy existence in some foreign place we cannot relate to, it will be practical , realistic , truly HEAVEN on EARTH !!

We all recognize how wonderfully perfect God created this world , so suited to our needs and desires! Man has lived on this earth for 6000 years, and it is still able to provide for his physical needs and challenge his curiosity and quest for knowledge. Scientists are finding today that they have just begun to discover how intricately and ingeniously our world has been designed. God did not make it ‘adequate’ He made it beyond our comprehension ! And we are told in God’s Word that the next life will be so incredibly beyond this life that we will never look back . In Isaiah 65:17 God declares , “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind."

Of course the best part of eternity will be that we see God face to face and live in His presence … all things having been restored to perfection. He will be our Light and our delight ! There will be no more doubt, no more sorrow or pain or disappointment… God will be dwelling with us… literally.

In eternity we will be ourselves! as much as we are who we are today. I will be me and you will be you … and we will recognize each other and delight in each other’s company.
We will be busy and productive and all the things in this life will have prepared us for our life there.
If an athlete’s goal is to compete in the Olympics as a discus thrower but his coach trains him as a bobsledder, he will arrive at the Olympics totally unprepared to compete in his event. So also it would be futile for God to ‘train’ us in this life if His plans and purposes for us in the next life are totally unrelated.
I believe that when we get to ‘heaven’ we will be amazed at how ‘easily ‘ we fit in , how totally suited to us it is. Yes, it will be ‘supernatural’ compared to this life, but I don’t think anyone would argue with the fact that the way we live in 2007 is ‘supernatural’ to how people lived in 1907 , a mere one hundred years ago.

You may ask , what about the people who have already left this life… where are they? If they were believers, they are with the Lord in a paradise resort… waiting for the culmination of all things , when death and evil will be forever banished from God’s presence and the new City will come down to the new earth fully prepared as our dwelling place. Did Jesus not promise His disciples that He would prepare mansions for them to live in?

I get excited when I think of what it will be like living in the ‘perfect ‘ world…. We so often hear people say, ‘only in a perfect world’ in a tone that belies the fact that a perfect world is possible !! But it is !!! Everyone of us will be alive and well, one day rejoicing in the delights that await us ,- if we have accepted the free invitation to be a citizen of God’s kingdom, if we are faithful and persevere to the end !!

Have you made your reservations, is your ticket stamped ‘valid’ ? Are you in training to be prepared to enjoy all that is awaiting you ?

(tomorrow’s blog – my granddaughters’ dreams of heaven )

Angels -- For Real ??

I just finished rereading “It Must Have Been a Miracle” by Kelsey Tyler, a collection of true stories of everyday lives touched by a miracle. Many of the inspiring stories involve angels.
The bible is clear, not only about the reality of angels, but that they can on occasion appear in us in human form.
According to scripture, people have entertained angels without even being aware of it. (Heb. 13:20) Angels were sent to bring God’s messages to His people, as we see in several bible stories such as the angel appearing to Hagar ( Gen. 16) to tell her to return to Sarah , her mistress, or the story of shy Gideon , being told by an angel that he was called to save his people. And lest we think it was only Old Testament occurrences, we have New Testament stories of angels too, such as the angel coming to free Peter from prison. ( Act. 12:7-11)

I know meeting angels on our daily path is not a usual occurrence , nor are we to look for them or worship them , but I do believe that they are still on duty today and when called to do so can break through the physical laws that separate us from the spiritual world.

I can’t say that I have entertained angels personally --except for one experience that may have involved an angel … I will let you be the judge.

Beginning in May of 1997 I began to be troubled with attacks – a very sudden onset of severe heart attack-like chest pain sending me to emergency. The attacks were diagnosed as pericarditus and though the cause was unknown the doctors told me that pericarditus was a rare occurrence and even more rare to reoccur. But they continued to plague my life.

In July of 1998 I had an attack that landed me in emergency in a hospital close to where we were having bible study that night.
The emergency doctor on duty was Dr. Koo . I was glad she was a woman because I’m always more comfortable with women doctors. The nurses suggested morphine to manage the pain but she ordered Toridol intravenously, which thankfully worked.
When the pain had somewhat subsided , she was standing by my bedside and said, “I think what you have is Lupus, I will give you a note to give to your doctor.”
I felt drawn to her and I asked her if she was taking any new patients.
She smiled, averted her eyes and said, “Well, I’m not really from here.”

Later that week, I made an appointment with my family physician and gave her the note. She read it and said, “You don’t have Lupus.!” Then she stopped, reconsidered and said, “Well, let’s run the tests, anyway.” The tests came back positive.

I had in the meantime read up on Lupus.. because other than the word being familiar I did not know much about the disease. One thing I learned is that it is very difficult to diagnose and for most people it can be 5-10 years before they know what is wrong with them. I don’t like hospitals, and tests and all that goes with it, so I was very grateful to Dr. Koo for sparing me the journey.
Wanting to express my gratitude to her, I called the hospital to see if I could find out how to contact her. I was transferred to the hospital records department and I explained I had been in emergency , told the receptionist the date and told her I wished to get in touch with Dr. Koo the doctor on call that night. The lady was very friendly and said , “Oh , yes, of course, just let me look at our records.”
There was a moment of silence and then she said, “Uh.. can you call back in an hour?” Her voice sounded nervous and I thought maybe an emergency had distracted her. I agreed, of course, and hung up.
I called back in an hour and the same lady answered the phone. I barely had time to tell her my name when she interrupted me, her words tumbling over each other and her voice sounding strained. She spoke very quickly as if to convey to me that she wanted my call to be over.
She said, “Yes, Dr. Koo was in emergency that night.. but we have no idea where she came from and we have no idea where she went.”
I was stunned, as much by her admission as by the facts.

Was Dr. Koo a doctor in the flesh? Or an angel? I do not know , but I do know that God put her there at a specific time, for a specific purpose - to assure me that He was in control and that I could trust Him no matter what I was going through.

We all love to hear about God’s miraculous interventions , but have you ever noticed that they don’t come in the middle of a perfect day when everything is going according to plan?? God’s miracles always come in a time of need or hardship or in our most terrifying moments. I know none of us wish for ‘hard times’ but our comfort in them is to know that God is close.
He always knows what we need and He is willing and able to take us through the deepest trial.