“Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.”
(Hebrews 13:2)
We can show hospitality to angels, unknowingly. The writer of Hebrews tells us that we may encounter angels in disguise without ever knowing it. I’m writing about three true stories that were shared by honest, sound minded, and reputable men, related to the topic of meeting angels in disguise.
A doctor from a small town in the southern U.S., who had a deep faith in God, once flew to Chicago for a medical conference. When he arrived, he decided to take public transportation instead of a cab. He took the el train and after he got off at his stop, he realized he got off at the wrong stop. Like a marked man, he stood alone and vulnerable on a strange street in a dangerous Chicago neighborhood. Wondering what to do next, and standing there in a suit and tie, holding a briefcase, he realized he was being watched.
A nefarious looking bunch of individuals spotted him, and began walking towards him, and the doctor had a feeling something very bad was about to happen. At that moment, a cab pulled up and the driver said, “Get in, you don’t belong here.” He got in the cab, escaping the glaring onlookers and was driven safely to his destination. After thanking the driver, he took his briefcase and got out of the cab. As he turned around to pay the driver, the cab was gone, as if it just disappeared.
We can think of other explanations, but I personally think that an angel in disguise of a cab driver was sent to protect that doctor, because it was not his time yet.
Another Christian man who is 92 years old recalls how he had lost his job in the mid 1960’s and he went through a really hard time financially. Many other trials were happening in his life at the same time, and his faith was being tested to the max.
One day as he was driving, he saw a hitchhiker, and decided to pick him up. The hitchhiker didn’t say much but seemed to be in great need so the man gave him a $5 bill (which was worth a lot more in the 60’s) and then dropped him off at his destination. The quiet man thanked him and got out of the car.
As he started driving away, he glanced in his rear view mirror, but the man was gone. He stopped the car and backed up, looking in all directions but the man was nowhere to be seen. He believed it was an angel sent to test him, to see if he would still show kindness and generosity, while going through his own financial problems. He was glad he showed compassion to that hitchhiker.
Another man told me that many years ago, he was driving down Route 83 in Mount Prospect, in my own neighborhood, where there is a railroad crossing. The railroad crossing lights were off and he and the car in the lane next to him were about to drive across the tracks, when a stranger in white clothing ran into the street out of nowhere and waved his hands telling the cars to stop. He and the man in the lane next to him both stopped and got out of their cars to see why the stranger was stopping traffic.
As soon as they stepped out of their cars, a speeding train whipped by so fast even though no warning lights ever went on. The stranger told them that the warning lights were not working. Before they could ask the stranger how he knew that the lights were not working, the stranger in white was gone.
If angels are not sent to test our faith, they are sent to protect us from evildoers, to warn us of danger, or to guide us in the right direction.
What a gift angels are to the family of God. I ask angels to surround me every day, and I don’t need to encounter an angel in disguise in order to believe in their constant protection of us. Since scripture tells us that we may encounter an angel while unaware, it’s a good reason to show kindness to strangers.
The book of Hebrews further explains the purpose of angels here in our human world:
“Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:14)
Angels are sent to minister to us because we are the heirs of salvation. Their role is to help us stay safe in order to live the number of our days so we can grow in our faith in God. Angels know whether it’s our time or not, and they will intervene to save us from life threatening circumstances. They work invisibly along side us, doing their part to help us get to heaven and to help us do our part in bringing others with us.
They occasionally take human form to accomplish their mission, and we never know when we are showing kindness to an angel in disguise. Whatever they do is to advance God’s purposes here on earth through us.
Lord, you are so good to us by sending all those wonderful angels to protect us, guide us, to test our faith and to bless us. Please continue sending angelic help to fulfill your purpose in us, as we help others to find eternal life. Amen