The Long Ball
While many of these stories are life-changing or have a profound impact on those who hear them, others involve seemingly insignificant events such as a children’s baseball game. Consider the case of John D. His baseball club had made the playoffs but was having difficulty in one of the semi-final games. With two outs, two strikes, and three balls, John’s side went up to bat in the bottom of the ninth inning. His team was behind 7 to 5. Then something strange happened:
“Our second baseman asked a timeout to tie his shoe,” John explains. “I was seated on a bench when a weird man I’d never seen before came in front of me.” I was still frozen, and my blood had turned to ice. He was clothed entirely in black and spoke without looking at me. I didn’t care for our batter. ‘Do you have bravery in this youngster, and do you have faith?’ replied this man. At that point, I glanced at my coach, who had removed his sunglasses and was seated right next to me, oblivious to the man. I returned my attention to the stranger, but he had vanished. Our second baseman immediately called time out. Our player smashed a home run out of the park on the next pitch, winning the game 8 to 7. We eventually won the championship.”
The Hand of an Angel
It’s one thing to win a baseball game, but it’s quite another to avoid major harm. Jackie B. claims her guardian angel appeared to her on two occasions. Her statement is particularly compelling in that she physically felt and heard this protective force. Both incidents occurred when she was in kindergarten:
“Everyone in town used to slide down the hill by the post office in the winter,” Jackie recalls. “I was sledding with my family until I reached the steep section.” I went down, closing my eyes. I reportedly hit someone who was falling and spun out of control. I was on my way to the metal guardrail. I had no idea what to do. Something instantly pushed my chest down. I came within a half-inch of hitting the rail but didn’t. I was on the verge of losing my nose.”
“The second experience occurred during a birthday celebration at school. During recess, I went to place my crown on the playground bench. I dashed back to play with my companions. Three boys tripped me out of nowhere. This playground was filled with metal objects and wood chips (not a good combo). I flew through the air and landed about a quarter-inch under my eye. But when I fell, I felt something pull me back. The teachers reported they saw me fly ahead then back at the end. As they rushed me to the nurse’s office, I kept hearing a strange voice say to me, ‘Don’t worry. I’ve arrived. God does not want anything bad to happen to his child.”
The Accident Alert
Is our future predetermined, and if so, how do psychics and prophets glimpse the future? Is the future simply a set of possibilities, the road to which we can influence through our actions? Hfen, a reader, writes about how she received two independent and unusual warnings about a possible future incident she was traveling toward. They just might have saved her life:
“My phone rang about four o’clock in the morning,” Hfen writes. “It was my sister from across the country calling.” Her voice trembled and she was on the verge of tears. She said she had a vision of me in a car accident. She didn’t specify whether or not I was murdered in it. However, the tone of her words suggested that she did believe this but was reluctant to tell me. She told me to pray and promised to pray for me. She warned me to be cautious, to take a different route to work, and to do anything I could. I assured her I trusted her and that I would contact our mother and ask her to join us in prayer.
I set off for work at the hospital, afraid but uplifted in spirit. I went to chat with some patients about some issues. As I was about to leave, a man in a wheelchair near the door cried out to me. I went to him expecting him to complain about the hospital. He informed me that God had given him an SMS informing me that I would be in a car accident! Someone who wasn’t paying attention, he said, would hit me. I nearly passed out from shock. He promised to pray for me and that God loved me. As I walked out of the hospital, I felt weak in my knees. I drove like an old lady, paying attention to every intersection, stop sign, and stop light. When I arrived home, I contacted my mother and sister to let them know I was fine.”
The Flight Documents
A salvaged relationship is just as valuable as a rescued life. Smigenk, a reader, describes how a small “miracle” may have saved her problematic marriage. A few years ago, she was making every effort to repair her strained marriage with her husband and plan a long romantic weekend in Bermuda. Then everything began to go awry, and it appeared that her intentions were doomed… until “fate” intervened:
“My spouse reluctantly consented to travel,” Smigenk says, “but was apprehensive about the little time between our connecting flights.” “We thought things were going well on the way into Philly, but there had been some poor weather and the planes were backed up;
As a result, we were placed in a holding pattern and arrived just as our connecting aircraft to Bermuda was about to take off. We ran through the airport, arriving at the check-in station just as the gate door closed. I was devastated, and my husband was irritated.
We requested new flights but were informed it would take two more flights and approximately ten hours to arrive. ‘That’s it,’ my spouse said. I’m not going to put up with this any longer,’ and began to walk out of the area and, I knew, out of the marriage. I was completely devastated. As my husband walked away, the attendant noticed something on the counter (which I swear was not there when we checked there). She was annoyed that it was still there. It turned out to be the landing documents packet that the pilot needed to land in another country. She instantly requested that the plane return. The jet had been parked on the runway, preparing to start the engines. It returned to the gate for the paperwork, and we (and others) were allowed to board.
Our time in Bermuda was fantastic, and we resolved to work on our issues. Our marriage has had its ups and downs, but we will never forget the episode in the airport when I felt as if my world had fallen and was given a miracle that allowed us to maintain our marriage and family together.
The Reading Guardian
It’s amazing how many stories of angels emerge from hospital encounters. Perhaps not so difficult to understand when we realize they are locations of intense emotions, prayers, and hope. Reader DBayLorBaby went to the hospital in 1994 with extreme pain from a “grapefruit-sized fibroid growth” in her uterus. The surgery was successful but more difficult than predicted, and her problems were far from over:
“I was in excruciating pain,” DBayLorBaby remembers. “The doctor gave me an IV drip of morphine only to discover that I am allergic to morphine.” They counteracted with additional medications because I experienced an allergic response. I was shocked! I had just undergone major surgery and had discovered that I might not be able to have children in the future and had recently experienced a severe medication reaction That night, they gave me another pain reliever, and I slept well for a few hours.
In the middle of the night, I awoke. It was 2:45 p.m., according to the wall clock. When I heard someone speaking, I knew they were at my bedside. It was a young woman with short brown hair who was dressed in a white medical uniform. She was seated and reading from the Bible aloud. ‘Am I all right?’ I asked. ‘What brings you here with me?’
She came to a halt in her reading but did not look at me. She just stated, ‘I was sent here to make sure you were okay.’ You will be just fine. You should now rest and go back to sleep.’ She resumed her reading, and I fell back asleep. I told my doctor about what happened the night before when I went in for my checkup the next day. He was perplexed and went over my post-surgery papers and notes. He explained that no nurses or doctors had been assigned to sit with me the night before. I questioned every nurse who cared for me, and they all said the same thing: no nurses or doctors had entered my room that night for anything other than to check my vitals. I still feel that night was visited by my guardian angel. She was sent to console me and reassure me that everything will be fine. Coincidentally, the time on the clock that night, 2:45 a.m., is the same moment that I was born on my birth certificate!”
