Are there angels among us? People have mixed views of angels. Some are obsessed with finding out all they can about them. Others simply doubt they exist.
All I had on my mind that morning was stopping for coffee. I took my thermos into the fast food restaurant to prepare for the 12 hour drive from Columbus, Ohio to Kansas City. At 5:30 a.m. the only other customer was a man in his fifties or sixties. As he stood next to me at the counter, he noticed my thermos and asked where I was headed. My reluctance to answer him probably showed. I was, after all, far from home, alone, and the sun had not yet ascended above the horizon.
But he projected a warmth and kindness that drew me into conversation. There were laugh lines in the ebony skin around his eyes. His demeanor displayed more fatherly concern than threat. After he heard my destination he said, “You’ll have construction around Indianapolis, but the rest of the way should be light to normal traffic. And, there’s snow in the forecast, but you shouldn’t see more than a few flurries.” He added a few other comments about the conditions I could expect on my journey.
“Are you a trucker?” I asked, since he seemed to know so much about the conditions along Interstate 70.
“No, but I have family in Kansas City,” he said.
We continued in friendly conversation for a few more minutes. The main thing I remember from him were words of warning. “Now, you be very careful,” he said. He repeated it several times. Even as we left the building and went in separate directions to our cars, it was the last thing he said to me.
The conditions I encountered fit with what he described. I did have to navigate through construction in Indianapolis. I did see a few flurries of snow in the air, but nothing accumulated on the ground. The traffic was not heavy. No surprises surfaced.
Then somewhere in Indiana or Illinois, I became sleepy. Dangerously so. As I continued to drive while fighting sleep, I heard that man’s voice in my head, “Now, you be very careful.” His voice was such a real presence in the car, it woke me up. I didn’t have any trouble with sleepiness after that.
Are there angels among us? The Bible mentions angels as real beings. Sometimes when an angel shows up on the pages of Scripture, whoever is in the vicinity falls down in fear. Other times the appearance of angels in the Bible is not so remarkable. They appear as men. We know they are angels only because the Bible tells us (Genesis 18).
Was this man an angel? I have no way of knowing for sure. I do know the Bible says angels are ministering servants sent to minister to God’s people (Hebrews 1:14). It also tells us to show hospitality to strangers because some have entertained angels without realizing it (Hebrews 13:2). Clearly, we won’t necessarily recognize angels if we encounter them.
Are there angels among us? The Bible tells us there are. Was he an angel? I can only wonder.
If you make the Lord your refuge, . . .he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go. Psalm 91:9-11 NLT
Have you ever encountered a suspected angel? Please leave a comment below.
Blessings,
Phyllis
Copyright 2024 Phyllis L. Farringer
Image by Ryan F from Pixabay
Surely that man was an angel!
Thank you for sharing your experience.
Thanks for stopping by, Nora.
Thank you for sharing, Phyllis. I believe in angels and that God sends them in both spiritual and physical form to watch over me and fight spiritual forces. I also know that that God uses other humans to say what I need to hear. I don’t know whether the man you encountered was an angel or a human, but I’m thankful he helped you!
Thank you, Joni. God can use anything and anyone for His purposes.