On Angel's Wings

Christmas is a good time to read with your family, Luke 2, A Christmas Carol and Twas the Night Before Christmas, and even my stories on Writers and Roses.

Rebecca Jones

A Christmas angel, full of cheer.

Robed in red, and gold.

So bright and bold.

A blessing for the New Year.

She brings His light,

She shines with His love.

The Christmas angel, a delight.

And roses from our Lord in hand.

He above all will, understand.

As we celebrate and rejoice,

In His birth.

His Spirit is ever present,

With us as believers, here on earth.

What beauty is His grace,

Our salvation so dear.

And a Christmas angel is always,

Likely to appear.

Rebecca Jones / It looked like a Christmas angel to me but please enjoy the matching puzzle I found at jigidi. Just click and load.

 

 

“St. Michael Triumphant” by Dosso Dossi, ca. 1562. St. Michael’s victory over the dragon in Revelation 12:7-9 is closely tied to Isaiah’s prophecy in Isaiah 27. Although he was kicked out of heaven in to our atmosphere, he will again be defeated and thrown into the lake of fire, soon after the Great Tribulation.

I have to say I rather enjoyed looking at all the paintings, sculptures and art of St Michael crushing him as the Lord’s archangel. I was reading about the feast of the archangel Michael and thought we might find it interesting as Christians, Catholic of not. We should have one goal to see people saved and that enemy defeated so we can be forever with our Lord.

Michaelmas, the feast day is observed on September 29-30. It was tradition to have goose for dinner. Also tradition  has it as when expelled Lucifer from heaven and the fell in a blackberry bush, so that is the last pie of the season as the devil made them unfit, but that could be merely speculation or folklore, from the British Isles to Ireland.

Workers often had to find new employment, as to being hired in the fields. There was also cake, nuts and daisies are the flower of choice. Children are encouraged to face their on fears or dragons with faith, a strong will as opposed to being strong willed and opposition all.

There is a red mass held to bless lawyers and judges and because. St. Michael is the patron saint of police men and women, there is also a blue mass. It also come with the equinox, which I find interesting, like the last quarter of the year, perhaps even a final harvest. We could be that close. Though it was the church’s idea to lure away pagans and there are many celebrations and different religions at this time, I don’t think the Lord minds us knowing a little history. And although I don’t tend to think of angels as saints, I appreciate that they are there to do battle.

And I’m sure he won’t mind a good dinner, a blessing, prayers for those in authority and who are protecting us, nor that we are mindful of the harvest and the work of His holy angels, and that Michael is at the head of the spiritual battle and will return with Him for His church, before the Great Tribulation.

Rebecca Jones

Fairest angel,

With golden hair and wing.

Do you guard?

Do you sing?

Fairest angel,

With golden wing and hair,

Are you in heaven?

What are you doing there?

Watching over me?

Listening to prayer?

I thank my Lord,

For fair angels,

Golden and pure.

I know they are watching me, for sure.

Here is a lovely example of a seraph, the hand is obviously Christ and it is a detail from a painting I have not yet identified. It could also be an altarpiece. I hope to locate it, I would love to see the whole painting.

Either  way, it is beautiful and I will include the other side,  their are angel at both hands, even if looks like a reversal, it isn’t.

A seraph, the plural being seraphim. is an angel with six wings, two can cover the face, and two to fly and two at the feet. Seraphim are also called the burning ones, and they are above the throne of God and cry, holy, holy, holy.

I think this is a beautiful representation of a seraph, I especially like the multi-colored wings. They will a be a sight to behold in heaven won’t they, as well as all the myriads of angels, for they are innumerable. And there are more for us than against us.

Have a blessed day as we believe angels are watching.

 

 

I just read a great e-mail from Pastor Rod Parsley, and I will try to remember it because I thought I had notes to copy and paste and uh oh, oops, I don’t. Anyway it was about how the enemy works against us.

Angels will be there for us and the enemy tries but he’s not match for God, as long as we stay close.

And he will try to get you to regress, to go backward, back into  your old ways and with old friends who will lead you astray.

Oppression is another way to keep your spirit mired down and crushed.

Obsession is when your focus is on a want or a person above God.

Depression, the feelings of sadness and despair, hopelessness. Jesus is our hope.

Possession, he will never be able to possess the soul of a child of the King but can draw you off into temptations and sin.

There may have been a couple of more but I will have them if recall them, but thank God He is also all about restoration. So don’t fall into the traps of distraction and destruction, angels are against the enemy.

Alex Y/ pexels

We have already had one painting of Peter’s release from prison by an angel, and to follow my post on his bitter tears, I came across another one, and it is just as impressive. So we we will recap the story.

Peter’s has been in prison and on the night before the trial, he is awakened by an angel and his chains fall off, after being prodded by a staff. It appears he is uncertain if it is a dream.

There is a sermon in, that isn’t there? God sent and angel and a staff to break chains. So Peter followed the angel through a gate that opened by itself and about about a block. He goes to Mary’s house, not Jesus’ mother and Rhoda is excited, the people inside think she is crazy.

She had not even bothered to let him and he keeps knocking while Rhoda insists it is him, they had been there praying but must not have expected him to be released, finally, they say it is his angel, did they think his angel looked like him?

Those are usually called dopplegangers, and I think they would be on the wrong side of the spiritual world, however God could use an angel that way I suppose but that would take discernment, it would be an easy way to deceive those who are unchurched and even some that are. Exactly why we need the Holy Spirit to discern and teach. 

They finally let him in and he tells them to warn the disciples and say he is free, and then leaves, they search the next day and do not find him.  We talked about angels role in promoting the gospel, this is a good example of that, had been not been released he could not have preached.

Of course, God didn’t need angel to do that, He could have just spoken it. Still, He created them to minister to the heirs of salvation, only that has been written yet. This is Acts and that is Hebrews.

As we study angels and tears this week, we are once again looking at Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. He shed tears and His sweat became as great drops of blood and He broke curses, if people could only believe that.

As Christians, we need to start believing and understand just how much He took for us. Not only sin but sickness and disease, shame, lack , so many more benefits and blessings and He will restore us.

May I pray for you today that you understand that Jesus gave His life, He shed tears, He still prays for us  and does not want our faith to fail. I pray His peace in Jesus name.