Angels

The day before my parents were killed, they were at my house for Easter.  Leaving Mom, my youngest daughter, and grandson in bed, Dad and I went to the Easter Sunrise service at my church.  After the service we ate breakfast at church.  As we were visiting with others, Dad began to share all the ways God had led him and our family through all sorts of situations from financial difficulties to life-threatening incidents.  These stories were fascinating and miraculous.  It was no wonder faith had come so easily for me as a child.  We lived it!

Some of Dad's stories I had heard before but others were new to me.  I thought how could I have been his daughter for 53 years and not known some of these things?  I'm sure I was better off not knowing many of those things at the time.  God does the same thing with us.

Mom, my daughter, and grandson joined us later at church where we had an amazing worship experience.  Later as we were eating lunch I began retelling some of Dad's stories to my daughter.  Dad picked up and added more stories with Mom chiming in as well.  It was a perfect time together.  Such a rich treasury of how God had blessed them, provided for them, and protected them through years in His service.  I am so grateful for that precious time!  Of course, I had no idea that in less than 24 hours they would both be dead.

In the same notebook of Mom's that I talked about yesterday Mom had written Matthew 18:10 and Psalm 91 at the top.  Matthew 18:10 says, "Watch that you don't treat a single one of these childlike believers arrogantly.  You realize, don't you, that their personal angels are constantly in touch with my Father in heaven?"

Below those scripture references Mom wrote Philippians 2:3 Consider others better than yourself in some way.  Everyone matters to Jesus.  Hebrews 1:14 - Angels keep their focus on God - ready to do His bidding - they are limited - NEVER love angels more than Jesus. (Caps & underline Mom's)  

I wondered why Mom would put emphasis on never loving angels more than Jesus?  I know she and Dad experienced so many instances where angels must have worked overtime but I never thought about putting angels higher than Jesus.  I'm sure Mom didn't either but she did know people who worshiped angels.  Perhaps she was just reminding herself not to be infatuated with angels.  Like her, they are servants of God.

A few months earlier Dad told me how he had been seeing angels floating above their bed in the middle of the night.  One night he looked up to see the angels he had become accustomed to and as he was looking at them, Jesus appeared in their midst.  He was so excited to see Jesus Himself!  That happened just a few months before they were killed and it was the last time he saw the angels in the middle of the night.

I felt that God held their angels back early that April morning.  That feeling was confirmed for me in the study of Revelation I talked about yesterday.  Jesus could have called a legion of angels to protect Him while He was tortured, ridiculed, and hung on the cross but He didn't.  In our lesson last night Beth Moore made the comment that she was certain that His angels were just itching to get in the fight.

Why wouldn't God allow them to protect His Son?  God held them back in order that we could be saved.  In I Peter chapter 1, Paul talks about how the prophets foretold the gift of life God was preparing.  In verse 12 of The Message version it says, "Angels would have given anything to be in on this!"

Satan thought he won a great victory when Christ's blood was spilled.  Little did he know it was God's plan all along.  I'm sure the enemy was celebrating the day my parents were killed but little did he know that it was God's plan all along!  May God be glorified!

Genesis 50:20a "Don't you see, you planned evil against me but God used those same plans for my good."