Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. As I prayed over the farm and its boundaries this morning, I imagined what it would look like if I could SEE the Lord’s Protection over it. I wonder how many Angels show up when I’m doing battle and I wonder if they have swords? I wondered if they stand side-by-side or if they hover majestically over the farm. The Bible says “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” I don’t need God to “prove” Himself to me – He already did that on the Cross. What He says, I believe without question. What I can see with my eyes overwhelms me, that’s for sure, but what I CAN’T see overwhelms me even more. There is a host of angels doing battle every single minute of every single day and God has assigned a few to you and to me. When the big battles come, so does an army of angels, and if I could SEE them doing battle on my behalf, I’d never be anxious. Isn’t that what the Journey looks like for you too?

Of all the spiritual “mysteries” that will keep us wondering until we reach Heaven, I think the “mystery” of angels is most often confused AND abused. Some people think that when we die we become angels to hover around watching over our loved ones…but that’s not true. Our loved ones already have angels assigned to them and when we get to Heaven there’s no coming back in any form or fashion. Some people believe in “angels” but they don’t believe in the Living God. I’m not sure where their “angels” are coming from OR who is commanding them – but they won’t be coming from a Good Place if the Creator of ALL things is denied. Some people “pray” to angels as if they can bypass God, and sometimes it looks like they worship the angels too. I don’t understand ALL the mysteries on this side of Heaven but I DO understand that the angels have been here since the beginning…they were Created by God…they are subject to Jesus Christ…they were made to last forever…and that God Almighty can summon them at will and Assign them where they need to be for me and you. After that…who cares what I don’t know now?

Some people believe that angels are mystical beings and that they can never be confused with man….but that’s not true. Every once in a while they “show up” in “human form” to do the work of their Father. In fact, we’re told – “do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.” Angels showed themselves to Abraham when they told him to expect a child, they showed up to warn Lot to get out of town. Angels brought Elijah bread and water and told him to regain his strength. There are countless times angels have “shown themselves” on God’s behalf even for someone like me. I believe I had an encounter with an angel years ago when a “mysterious” man showed up at just the right moment in time (and seemingly out of nowhere) when I was (unknowingly) in the presence of a man who was soon to be arrested for being a serial killer. God can summon the angels anytime He wants to, and sometimes we can see them with our eyes!

One time Elisha was facing a battle and things were looking grim. His servant was overwhelmed by fear so Elijah prayed that God would open his eyes so that his servant could see what Elisha already KNEW was there – “then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” If we could all SEE with our eyes what takes place in the Spiritual Places it would blow our minds and we’d never fear again! To see the evil ones working hard 24/7 to devour would drive us to our knees in prayer, and to see the fields filled with His Army ready to Protect what belongs to Him would send us into Perpetual Praise mode! What takes place in the “heavenly realms” is a much bigger deal than what we see with our eyes here on earth…and remembering that is the Key to Faith through it all!

God’s hand of Protection is over my Life, my family, this old farm, and the Ministry He’s called into being. When I pray, I BELIEVE because praying without Faith would be nothing more than chatter. I don’t need to see the heavenly host to be confident that they show up when God commands them my way because I’ve experienced Victory over and over again. I can’t see them with my eyes, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t there. I’m pretty sure that if God would “open my eyes” so that I could see the way Elishah’s servant did, I’d see “the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around” – me and this old farm surrounded by angels ready to Protect what Belongs to Him.

How about you?