“Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.”
Luke 12:2 (RSV)
One thing that is not often revealed but needs to be known, is that God loves us so much, that He surrounds us with heavenly beings every day. I think of how often I hurry about my day, forgetting this truth.
Occasionally something happens to slow us down to a stop, in order to remind us of the constant presence of these heavenly helpers all around us. It happened for some, one day, in the small town of Cokeville, Oregon, many years ago, in the late 90’s.
Since the presence of angels is usually hidden from us in this present life, the following story is unique, because God chose to reveal His angels to a few primary grade children during a very frightening event.
On that particular day, a suicide bomber walked into a primary grade school and held 79 children and adults hostage. The deranged man threatening to detonate a homemade bomb, which was strapped to his body. Children, who were huddled together in a corner of that room, began praying silently together.
After an hour of waiting for his demands to be met, the man mistakenly detonated his bomb, killing himself. Although some people in the room had burn injuries, not one of the 79 hostages in that room, were killed or seriously injured. Explosive experts investigated, but could not explain why all the impact of the explosion went upward to the roof, instead of outward as a normal explosion does.
Afterward, some of the children said that they saw angels in the room, standing in a circle shielding them from the man with the bomb. God permitted a few children to witness how that miracle happened, as angels became a supernatural shield, forcing the blast to go upward instead or outward, protecting all the hostages in the room.
One teacher recalls her memory of that day, saying that she was in total fear from the moment the bomber ordered the hostages into the room. It was only after she saw the children huddled together in prayer, that she felt an unusual sense of peace and calm. She never saw any angels, but she definitely felt the effect of them in the room.
Angels are with us always, but they are usually hidden from our eyes, although at times they take the form of a human person. We are told to be alert to how we treat strangers, who could be angels in disguise. (Hebrews 13:2)
That day in Oregon was rare, as angels were physically revealed to the youngest in that room, while others, not seeing anything, felt the effect of their holy presence. Maybe God chose to reveal His angels to the children that day, because they are more open than adults, and not too busy to sit still, listen or see.
Jesus had things to say on the subject of both children and angels, such as, “I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 18:10)
We all have an appointed advocate, from womb to tomb, who stands before God, on our behalf. If angels in heaven plead our case since we were born, how much more should we plead the case and care for the least among us, in our society?
God gave us angels, so that we have friends in high places, and they still minister to us each day, and will do so, for the rest of our lives. We are not able to see them now, but when we leave this physical world, and enter the eternal one, things that used to be hidden will finally be revealed. Heaven reveals everything, and we will finally meet that great cloud of witnesses who observed us all the days of our life, including angels, saints, departed loved ones, all headed up by Jesus, who is Lord and Savior.
Until then, we can make it our daily practice, to be still and know that God is with us, without seeing Him. He is in the room that we are sitting in right now, and His angelic helpers are all around us. We might as well make good use of their heavenly guidance, in this one and only life we have to live.
Lord, please direct your angels to save those who need some type of miracle today. Teach us to slow down, to be still, and be aware of your Presence and angels, who are with us everywhere, each day. Amen
