Have you ever had someone drop into your life at a time when you needed help or perhaps just a friend? Some would say that it was a coincidence or a stroke of luck. But have you considered that they were sent by God to meet your need? Perhaps, an angel?
Several years ago, I lost my mother, my mother-in-law, and my best friend in a short time of two and a half years. Although I knew that all three of them were rejoicing with Jesus in Heaven, my sense of loss was still very deep. Sadness seemed to be my constant companion. My husband was supportive but he, too, was struggling with his own emotions and grief. I asked God to relieve my sorrow, the sadness that seemed almost too heavy to carry.
At a Christmas tea, we were given an ornament with the name of another attendee. We were to pray for that individual and her needs. After the tea, a woman I barely knew approached and told me that she had received an ornament with my name. She asked if there was anything I needed her to pray for. I told her about the three most important women in my life dying within a short time and my feelings of deep grief. She said she would pray and left.
A couple of weeks later, I ran into her at Curves, where I exercised. She had just purchased a membership. We talked briefly and decided that we would meet at a certain time to exercise together. This was the beginning of a friendship—of exercise mornings, lunch dates, and afternoons of crafts and talking. We became good friends as we shared our lives and our hopes and dreams.
Approximately three years later, she announced one morning that her husband was retiring and that they were moving to another state. It saddened me but I felt God’s peace as I realized that He had sent this woman when I desperately needed a friend to help me through a difficult time. Her friendship had helped me through the rough patches and now with God’s help, I was strong enough to help myself.
Was she an angel? Perhaps, not in the sense of the accounts of angels in the Bible. But, an angel nevertheless as she ministered to me.
“…no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” Psalm 91:10-12 (NIV)
~ Juanita Adamson
