As she opened the window to call to him, she saw that what she had thought was a short fair youth was actually a tall angel, kneeling as if in prayer. Vicki says, "He was half turned away from me, with wings, looking as if he had stepped off an ornate tomb ! My first reaction was utter amazement; my second was feeling like an intruder myself, seeing something totally private. I watched him silently for a while, then closed the window as quietly as I could and got back into bed."
Vicki relates the surprising sequel: "I lay there thinking, Some people have gnomes in their gardens, I've got an angel in mine! I felt a weird mixture of pleasure and This is ridiculous. Have I lost my marbles? Then the angel spoke to me. I was aware of his message as an emerging conciousness. He told me not to be jugmental of people, even when I was sure they were wrong, that only God may judge. Not to hate people for what they do, but to understand. That life on Earth is only a tiny droplet in the ocean of eternity and my concern should be to try to become as close to God as I could, since God is composed of love and light.
"Really, I don't have words to describe his message. I can only say I was filled with an incredible sense of love and knew I was feeling Heaven. Written down, the message sounded simplistic, yet it was full of subtlety; he spoke to my understanding. I fell asleep filled with enlightenment.
"It took several weeks to realize the full effect. The angel had taken my anger and left me with self-knowledge and illumination. Those who know me well comment on a change; I am a richer, more committed and gentler person as a result."
She replied, "Of course I trust You, Lord," and went to switch off the light. She explains," Then I could see, just outside my front door, two warrior angels in full armor from head to toe, including big iron helmets. They were about ten feet tall, on each side of my door, each holding a long spear which they crossed over my door.
"I said to the Lord, 'If anyone tries to break in, Lord,they would be terrified and run !' I now know that those warrior angels are always there." This is the protection promised to believers in Psalms 34:7 - " The angel of the Lord encampeth round those who fear Him, and delivereth them."
One evening the prayer meeting had gone on very late, so when everyone went home Mrs. Merret went straight to bed and slept soundly. The next morning, when she came downstairs, she saw a light shinning from under the front room door. Oh, my goodness, she thought, I must have left the light on. She pushed open the door and stood transfixed. There on the rug in front of the fireplace stood an angel in shinning white robes. He smiled at her and then he disappeared before her eyes, leaving the room in darkness.Mrs. Mereet was thrilled; all she could say was, "Thank you Jesus !"
She was 85 at the time, but her meetings continued to be blessed until she went to be with her Lord at the age of 89.
At bedtime, Joyce made her husband as comfortable as possible, although his gasping for breath meant he had to sleep sitting up. Joyce describes what happened next: "Just then angels started to surround our bungalow, shadowy figures, all facing inwards. There were so many I could not possibly count them. The chief one came and insisted I go to sleep; no harm would come while they were there. I slept amazingly well, waking only once to attend to my husband. At 08:00 the following morning, I was literally shaken from my sleep and, as I opened my eyes, the last few angels were departing.
The chief one was by me saying,' Hurry up, we have to go. All is well.' And he was gone. I sat up and could hardly believe how peaceful my husband looked. He was pink and lying down, breathing easily, instead of blue and gasping. When the doctor saw him, he couldn't speak for amazement."
Some time later the doctor said to Joyce, "Medically that was an impossibility. It was only your prayers and faith that saved him." Joyce then told him about the angels. Her husband continued to make excellent progress.
The car in front turned onto our exit ramp and stalled in the deep water. "I guess we can't go that way," I sighed and pulled over onto the shoulder to wait out the storm. An hour later, the rain still showed no sign of stopping. We'd have to walk home.
With Christy riding piggy-back, I took my umbrella in one hand and started down the grassy slope of the overpass. By now the highway was a muddy river. I took a deep breath and waded in. A gust of wind ripped the umbrella from my hand and I lost my shoes in the strong current. When the water reached above my waist, I put Christy on my shoulders.
Dear Lord, I prayed, fighting to stay on my feet, please help me get Christy to safety. I remembered the prayer cards I'd collected as a child that pictured white-winged angels with blond hair and porcelain skin. How I needed one of those angels now !
Suddenly Christy was lifted off my shoulders and a strong arm grabbed me around the waist. I looked up into the face of a tall, husky, brown-skinned man. "Are you all right ?" I asked Christy when the man set us safely on the ground.
"Yes, Mommy," Christy said. " Who helped us ?" I turned to thank our rescuer, but he was nowhere to be found. So much for white wings and porcelain skin !
I was in an area where bands of young thugs were terrorizing people, and in Africa there is always the danger of wild animals. For an hour, not a single vehicle passed, so I became increasingly cold and scared. From time to time I tried to get the car to move, to no avail, and all the time I was praying with my whole heart for the Lord to help me.
As darkness fell, I suddenly had a strong urge to start the engine again and, as I turned the key, I felt the car move effortlessly out of the solid mud of the ditch and back up on to the crest of the road ! The car was not yet in gear, and I was absolutely dumbfounded ! It felt just as if someone very strong had pushed me out, but I looked around and not a soul was in sight. I hadn't the slightest doubt that God's angels were there. Some answers to prayer just knock the breath out of you, and this was one of them!"
The man in the middle to whom he pointed then spoke to him. Clearly, yet gently, He traced the whole of Fred's criminal life up to the desperate present. He knew everything about Fred, just as He knew the woman at the well of Samaria, so that when He met her, He was able immediately to recount all of her past (John 4). Fred listened to every word, surprisingly not afraid or overawed in this unusual situation.
Jesus showed Fred that God was offering him forgiveness for every wrong he had ever done, because of Jesus' death. This paid for Fred's sins and His rising to life again overcame the power of death.
At the end of the wonderful talk, Jesus said, " If you want to become a Christian, you must drive hatred from your heart." Fred knew He spoke the truth, and that He refered to his attitude toward the prison officers, some of whom he had felt extreme hatred towards, to the point of contemplating murder.
Fred had been listening with his head in his hands but, as the last sentence was spoken, he looked up. The three men, still facing Fred, were fading through the wall. There was a distinct click and he was alone.
That was Jesus Himself, here in this cell, Fred told himself. There was no fear; instead he lay down in great peace and slept. This experience changed Fred completely, and he has gone on to lead a fruitful, joyful life.
She was nursing an eleven year old boy who had cancer in his leg. No one ever visited him and he seemed all alone in the world. The nurse shared very honestly with the class how she had struggled to know what to say to the lad, and how she had given him the twenty third Psalm to read. " The Lord is my shepherd."
The nurse suggested the boy replace the words " I, me and my" through the Psalm with his own name, to make God's promises of security more personal for him. The nurse reports, "While I was changing the dressing on his leg, I told him that Jesus loved him and would be with him always, even if he became more ill. I frankly did not know what else to say, as I did not want to tell him bluntly that he was going to die.
I had started to clear up the trolley when the boy said, ' Do you see them . nurse?' I said, 'see who?' and looked out of the window, thinking he was watching someone outside."
He asked,"Can't you see the two angels standing in the room behind you?" He pointed to where they were, but I had to admit I couldn't see them, even though I believe angels come to help us. He told me that he wasn't afraid anymore of dying, because he knew Jesus loved him and he felt safe with the angels.
After that, the other nurses noticed how much happier he was and wondered why. I told them about the angels, and the nurses felt the boy's ability to see the angels just then was a special gift from God. I had not needed to see the angels; they were especially for him. The boy died peacefully that night.