Angels Unaware

Betty Dewhirst

In Hebrews 13:2 (ASV) it reads:  “Forget not to show love unto strangers:  for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”

The Aramaic Bible in Plain English reads:  “And do not forget kindness to strangers, for by this, some who, while they were unaware, were worthy to receive Angels.”

I heard that scripture quoted throughout the years and I remember when I was young thinking how strange it would be to have angels in your midst and not realize it.  I was fascinated by the thought.  As the years passed and I have grown older I have heard some interesting stories that are worth repeating.

In my walk with the Lord, I have discovered that some believers are very sensitive to the spirit realm and others are not.  Still, it is ultimately a walk of faith!  God is a faithful God and the closer we draw near to Him, the more He reveals Himself to us.

A number of years ago, the story was circulating about various people picking up a hitchhiker, who, in the course of their time together, would share with the driver that Jesus was coming soon!  Then, as the hitchhiker got out of the car and began walking away, the driver would look back and the hitchhiker was not to be seen. He just disappeared!  The driver then realized that it must have been an angel!

The story was told all over the nation.  Believers were thrilled to hear the story.  It was not an isolated event, but it was happening in many places.  The Lord was getting people’s attention!   It seems that in most of the stories I have heard that there was usually something that got the attention of the person involved that triggered the thought that it might be an angel.  In this case, it was the sudden disappearance of the hitchhiker.

My husband and I lived in Japan for five years.  We loved it there!  We had only been in Japan about two weeks when we decided to venture out by ourselves and ride the train to Tokyo Disneyland.  Now, this was a challenge for us as we did not speak Japanese.  On the way, I was careful to count how many stops there were before arriving at Disneyland so that we would know where to get off on the way back.

It was late at night when we left Disneyland and the train was very crowded.  What we did not realize was that there were two different trains that stopped at Disneyland. On the way back, one of the trains went a different direction after the third stop.  We disembarked at the fifth  stop thinking that was the station where we had gotten on the train.  We descended the stairs that led from the tracks into the station, and then, suddenly I realized that it was not Nishi-Funabashi station, where we had originally boarded the train.

It was after 11:00 p.m. and at first we did not know what we were going to do to find our way back home since we did not speak Japanese.  But, the thought came to me to have my husband go back up to the tracks and say, “Sumimasen, Do you speak English?”  Sumimasen means excuse me.  So, hesitantly he did so, and there was a man there that did speak English and he told my husband for us to follow him and he would help us get back to Nishi-Funabashi.

The man boarded another train and motioned for us to get on.  We did so and were very thankful to know that we would be getting home safely after all.  When the train arrived at Nishi-Funabashi, many people got off and began descending the staircase to the station.  We were like a herd of cattle walking down as it was very crowded.

All of a sudden I happened to notice that the man abruptly turned around and began ascending the stairs again instead of continuing into the station.  Had I not seen this, I probably would not have thought much about the whole thing.  But, the thought suddenly came to me that, he might have been an angel!  When I later related this story to a very prophetic friend of mine, she said:  “Of course it was an angel!”

This same friend has had many angelic encounters in her lifetime.  I recall her telling us about the time a man contacted her to give her some money that was much needed at that time.  She actually has a ministry of being a conduit to give money to others.  It just passes through her hands.  She is so blessed and has seen the Lord provide miraculously for many years in her life.  This particular time I am speaking of this man gave her a check and signed it Mac Glory.  She was convinced it had been an angel.  God does work in mysterious ways, His wonders to perform. And, the check was good!

As the days grow darker, and the Light begins shining brighter in the true saints of God, who have not bowed to the enemy, but who have surrendered their lives to the Lord, I am sure we will see more angelic encounters and that we will realize the reality of the spirit realm more than ever.  We need to stay in His Presence!  He is our Ark of Safety, our shelter in the time of storm. We will begin to see the angels ministering to the saints of God, who are the heirs of salvation.

In the days that are upon us, we must draw near to the Lord and allow Him to lead and guide us.  We do not know what the future holds, but we know who holds the future.   We must not fear but we must walk on in faith, standing on the Word of God and being obedient to that still, small voice in our spirit as the Holy Spirit leads and guides us.  He will never leave us nor forsake us.  His Grace is sufficient as we yield our lives to Him.

I love Isaiah 43:2 NASB — “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you.”

In Hebrews 11, the great Faith chapter in the Word of God, the saints in faith believed God for deliverance.  We read of many testimonies of how God did lead and guide them and deliver them.  Then, there were those who lost their lives.  Our lives are in His Hands.  He will never leave us nor forsake us!  In these last days, our spiritual eyes will be opened and I believe that we shall be aware of angels ministering to us.

May we all walk on in faith and stay true to Him who has called us out of darkness into His Marvelous Light!

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