Guardian Angels: Reality or Resistance?

Throughout the Old and New Testament we read of angels guarding the children of God. In Acts 5:19 several of the disciples were sprung from prison by an angel. Acts 12:1-15 is an account of the apostle Peter being set free from prison by an angel. He then goes to the house of Mary, John Mark's mother. Rhoda ran to tell the Christians praying for Peter that he was at the door. They had some debate and told her she was crazy. When she insisted that Peter was at the door, they responded that "it must be his angel." These Christians felt that this person at the door must be Peter's guardian angel. In other words, they felt Peter had an angel that sounded and perhaps even looked just like him.

In Matthew 18:10, Jesus speaks of little children having guardian angels in heaven that have access to God, ready to receive His orders. Psalm 91:11 suggest that even adults have angels watching over them guarding them in all their ways. Hebrews 1:14 speaks of "ministering spirits" whose purpose is to serve Christians.

On top of the biblical evidence are countless experiences so strong and widespread that it is difficult, if not impossible, to object to the idea of guardian angels. Great men and women of God from every century past spoke of miraculous escapes from threatening dangers which they could not explain in any other way but by the ministry of angels.

Yet, I find myself resistant to the idea of having a guardian angel. I'm not confident we have one particular angel assigned for our personal protection. Like John Calvin, I'm more inclined to believe angels in general are assigned to minister to humans, but not specific angels for specific men and women. Perhaps the assignments of guardian angels are temporary for a specific time and need, and not a permanent assignment for life.

I'm resistant to the idea of having a guardian angel because of their inconsistency. You can't really count on them for a special delivery when you need it the most. It seems that for every miraculous escape or deliverance there are dozens, if not hundreds, of stories when the child did fall and die, or drown, or the family did get hit by a drunk driver. Joni Erickson Tada wondered why God could not have spared one guardian angel to keep her from making that fateful dive that broke her neck.

I understand that in her case you could argue that her injury made her a far more powerful instrument for the glory of God. But that is not the case with most people who break their necks.

If you can't count on your guardian angel aren't you better off not even taking one into consideration? They fall into the same category as a plastic saint on the dash board, or a lucky rabbit's foot. It almost seems like a superstition to have any faith in the protection of guardian angels. Emerson expressed the question of thousands of parents who have lost children:

Was there no star that could be sent,
No watcher in the firmament,
No angel from the countless host
That loiter round the crystal coast,
Could stoop to heal that only child?

So what am I to do? I have the real evidence of the Bible plus the experiences from mature Christ followers on one hand, and my resistance fueled with inconsistencies and doubts on the other. How can I deal with the obligation to believe the biblical evidence and overcome an overwhelming basis of doubt?

First of all, I recognize the limitations of angels. Angels only act according to the will of God, and God has placed limitations on himself in relation to the gift of our free will. He cannot let us be free, and still make us do His will. If He could, His will would always be done. If God has limited Himself, then, of course, His servants (angels) have this same limitation.

Secondly, I can't expect a guardian angel to bail me out when I do stupid stuff. I can't expect protection if I choose to live beyond the boundaries. When I travel I do pray to Jesus to protect us, and ask for the protection of His angels, but I use all the wisdom I have learned over the years to make sure I am driving in a way that does not endanger myself or others.

Thirdly, no where am I told to rely or put my faith in angels; I can't claim to their protection. I need to trust in Jesus Christ, and live in obedience to the wisdom of His Word. I need to make the right decision and do my best to avoid harm. But my prayer should not be to have a life free of tragedy, instead that I would be faithful to God in the midst of tragedy.

To sum it all up, I believe in guardian angels. It is my hope that I may be spared from tragedy that is beyond my control, but I take my responsibility very seriously to protect myself and my family, and I do not expect angels to do what is my job to do.

Jesus Take the Wheel

“Worry weighs a person down.” – Proverbs 12:25 NLT

In his book, Parables (Creation House, 1991), Jamie Buckingham tells about a pilot in Ecuador who was involved in a plane crash because of a passenger's fear. The wheels of the heavily loaded Cessna 206 had barely left the wet jungle airstrip when the passenger, sitting in the co-pilot's seat, panicked. The pilot had the throttle pushed all the way forward to the firewall. He had done this many times before and was confident they would clear the huge trees towering at the end of the little airstrip.

The passenger, an American who had been visiting the Indians, had never taken off from a jungle airstrip. Looking up, all he could see were the on-rushing trees filling the windshield. “Why doesn't the pilot pull back on the controls?” he thought in terror. Fearful they were going to crash, he tried to help. He grabbed the wheel and pulled back. That was the worst thing he could have done. A plane needs to build up airspeed before you point the nose skyward. Otherwise, the plane will stall.

The plane did stall. It pitched up, lost critical airspeed and began to settle toward the jungle below. The pilot wrenched the controls back and tried desperately to get the nose down. But it was too late. As the airplane reached stalling speed, the heavy engine pulled the nose over sharply, and the craft spun to earth. By God's grace, no one was killed, but all were injured because of a passenger's lack of trust in his pilot.

How often are we like that frightened passenger? We panic and worry, grabbing the controls from God, denying him access to our lives, because we fear risk and failure. We would rather trust our own ability than that of the Master. Give the controls back to God. Turn your life over to God and trust His promises!

What's Good about Good Friday?

This week we will have a Good Friday service. I wonder, and perhaps you do too – How is it that we call the day Jesus was crucified, good? I mean I find it hard in my own life to imagine a day marked with sadness as a good day.

Since the early centuries of the church, the day was marked with sadness, mourning, fasting, and prayer. Christians were instructed that it was to be a “day of mourning, not a day of festive joy.” Ambrose said it should be a “day of bitterness on which we fast.” Historically, many church buildings were kept dark even by draping black cloth over the windows, and processions of Christians dressed in black would walk the stations of the cross along the Via Dolorosa.

What’s good about Good Friday?

Truly it is a sad day, yet that sadness is truly good. The sorrow of the day is godly sorrow. It is like the sorrow the Corinthians felt after they were disciplined by their beloved teacher, Paul, in the sharp letter we call First Corinthians. Hearing of their conviction of sin and repentance, Paul wrote back, “My joy was greater than ever.” Why? Because such godly sorrow “brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret” (2 Cor. 7:10).

The commemoration of Christ's death on Good Friday reminds us of the human sin that caused this death. It enables us to see that salvation comes only through godly sorrow. The path to true happiness runs through the experiences of sorrow – shed tears turn to joy.
Good Friday also reminds us of God's love—“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son” (John 3:16). The goodness and grace of God revealed on a cross is certainly worth commemorating – it is good news – check that, it is great news! Perhaps we should start calling the day Great Friday!

In His Grip,
Phil

The Principles of Pragmatism – An Oxymoron

We have heard our new President clearly outline the principles that will guide his decision making and how he plans to govern.

For example, President Obama told the American people that he was ordering higher ethical standards for lobbying. "If you are a lobbyist entering my administration," Obama said, "you will not be able to work on matters you lobbied on, or in the agencies you lobbied during the previous two years." I applauded his principle.

But now that the campaign is over with victory in hand; now that the celebrations have died down, our President is showing his tendency to choose pragmatism over principle.

Case in point, President Obama quickly appointed William Lynn as deputy secretary of defense—despite the fact that, until very recently, he had been a lobbyist for Raytheon, one of the nation's biggest defense contractors, right up until the time he was appointed. What happened to the principle of a two year waiting period?

When the press challenged him on this, Obama said Lynn was uniquely qualified to do the job, so he issued a waiver. How was he uniquely qualified? He knew how the system worked.

Pragmatism trumped principle. Expedience overtook doing what is right. The end justifies the means.

President Obama used the same argument for his choice of Tim Geithner to be our Treasury Secretary. Geithner, as we all know, neglected to pay $35,000 in self-employment taxes for several years. Senator Robert Byrd—a member of Obama's own party—called Geithner's behavior "inexcusable negligence." Words, I'm sure, we would all hear from the IRS if we had failed to pay our taxes.

Again, pragmatism trumped principle.

The message Obama is sending to our kids is: "If you're smart, qualified, and know how to play the game, its okay to be unethical."

Let's be honest – character and principle don't matter in our society. You can be considered a good president and cheat on your wife. You can become head of the government's treasury and cheat on your taxes. You can get appointed to a Senate seat by an ousted governor whose middle name is synonymous with corruption. You can be a president who runs on the mantra of change, but can't stand up to your own party based on you own so-called principles. You can say what want and do something completely different – pragmatism over principle.

I am deeply concerned about the pragmatic path of our President – for pragmatism is a mere form of postmodern, humanistic relativism.

It is important that we continue to pray for the President, that he will uphold the principles that have made this nation strong.