50 Interesting Trivia About Angels

1. ANGELS CARE ABOUT MILITARY PERSONNEL. The very first Gentile convert was a military officer. "About the ninth hour of the day he clearly saw in a vision an angel of God who had just come in to him, and said to him, ‘Cornelius!’ and fixing his gaze upon him and being much alarmed, he said, ‘What is it, Lord?’ And he said to him, ‘Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God’ " (Acts 10:3-4)

2. PRISON BARS CANNOT KEEP ANGELS FROM US. What glorious things angels have wrought in prison. "But an angel of the Lord during the night opened the gates of the prison, and taking them out he said, ‘Go your way, stand and speak to the people in the temple the whole message of this Life’." (Acts 5:19-20)

3. LITTLE CHILDREN HAVE GUARDIAN ANGELS. Jesus lovingly spoke of children seven times in this, the children’s chapter of the Bible. "See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you, that their angels in heaven continually behold the face of My Father who is in heaven. For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost." (Matt 18:10, 11)

4. ANGELS HAVE NOT ALWAYS EXISTED, BUT WERE CREATED PRIOR TO ADAM. Only four angelic beings are mentioned by name in scripture: Michael and Gabriel (Holy): Lucifer and Abbadon (Fallen). "And He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities - all things have been created by Him and for Him." (Colossians 1:15, 16)

5. ANGELS ARE SUBJECT TO JESUS, THEIR COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. Angels cannot work the works of the Holy Spirit, nor grant forgiveness for sin. "And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you - not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience - through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him." (I Peter 3:21,22)

6. BECAUSE NAKEDNESS IS A MARK OF APOSTASY BEFORE GOD, ANGELS IN THEIR NATURAL STATE ARE CLOTHED IN PURE, FINE, WHITE LINEN. So was the High Priest when making access to God. Jesus was wrapped for burial in fine linen prior to His resurrection. "And his appearance was like lightning, and his garment as white as snow; and the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men." (Matthew 28: 3,4)

7. A NUMBERLESS HOST OF ANGELS DESCENDED UPON MT. SINAI. There Moses received the law from God, which the angels themselves had ordained. "Why do you look with envy, O mountains with many peaks, at the mountain which God has desired for His abode? Surely, the Lord will dwell there forever. The chariots of God are myriads, thousands upon thousands; the Lord is among them as at Sinai, in holiness." (Psalm 68:16,17)

8. GOD’S ANGELS ARE HOLY (SINLESS) BY CHOICE. Angels are spoken of more in the New Testament than in the Old Testament. "For what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels." (Mark 8:37,38)

9. ANGELS LIVE IN CLOSE AND CONSTANT COMMUNION WITH GOD, CONTINUALLY PRAISING HIM. If man were the only creature giving praise to God, how little glory He would receive from His creation. "And Zacharias said to the angel, ‘How shall I know this for certain? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years,’ And the angel answered and said to him, ‘I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God: and I have been sent to speak to you, and to bring to you this good news." (Luke 1:18,19)

10. THE ANGELS’ CAPITOL IS IN A HEAVEN FREE FROM SIN, THE BUSIEST PLACE IN THE UNIVERSE. To deny the existence of angels and of heaven is to deny the Deity of Christ, for He spoke of them both quite often. "Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Because I said to you that I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You shall see greater things than these.’ And He said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you shall see the heavens opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man." (John 1:50,51)

11. ANGELS ARE VASTLY NUMEROUS. The Hebrew language had no word for "million", so when speaking of angels, they expressed a million as "a thousand thousands (which is a million) and ten thousand times ten thousand (a hundred million)". "But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living god, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the first-born who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of righteous men made perfect." (Hebrews 12:22,23)

12. ANGELS DO NOT MARRY OR REPRODUCE. There is no mention in scripture of "baby" angels. "But Jesus answered and said to them, ‘You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures, or the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels in heaven." (Matthew 22:29,30)

13. ANGELS NEVER DIE, NEITHER IS IT MENTIONED THAT THEY CAN WEEP. There will be no hospitals, graveyards or jails in heaven. "But those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage; for neither can they die any more, for they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection." (Luke 20:35,36)
ANGELS ARE NOT "ALL KNOWING". "heaven and earth will pass away, but My words shall not pass away. But the day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone." (Matthew 24:35,36)

14. ANGELS CAMP AROUND THOSE WHO FEAR GOD. "The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them. O taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!" (Psalm 34:7,8)

15. ANGELS ARE WISE AND HAVE DISCERNMENT. "In order to change the appearance of things your servant Joab has done this thing. But my lord is wise, like the wisdom of the angel of God, to know all that is in the earth. Then the king said to Joab, ‘Behold now, I will surely do this thing; go therefore, bring back the young man Absalom." (II Samuel 14:20,21)

16. ANGELS ARE MULTI-LINGUAL. "If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing." (I Corinthians 13:1,2)

17. ANGELS CAN VIEW US FROM THEIR ROYAL COURT AND HAVE THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE AS THEIR COLISEUM. "For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor." (I Corinthians 4:9,10)

18. ANGELS EAT HEAVENLY MANNA. It is possible that Jesus ate angel food (manna from heaven) when angels ministered to Him after His 40 days of fasting in the wilderness. "And He rained down manna upon them to eat, and gave them food from heaven. Man did eat the bread of angels; He sent them food in abundance." (Psalm 78:24,25)

19. AROUND THE THRONE OF GOD SERAPHIM STAND ABOVE AND CRY, "HOLY", CHERUBIM STAND BELOW TO GUARD, BUT NO ANGEL IS ALLOWED TO SIT AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, AS THAT IS RESERVED FOR HIS SON AND OUR SAVIOR. "For to which of the angels did He ever say, ‘Thou art My Son, today I have begotten thee’? And again, ‘I will be a Father to Him, and He shall be a Son to me’? And again He brings the first-born into the world, He says, ‘And let all the angels of God worship Him’." (Hebrews 1:5,6)

20. ANGELS PATROL THE EARTH. The "real" God-squad. "And the man who was standing among the myrtle trees answered and said, ‘These are those whom the Lord has sent to patrol the earth’. So they answered the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees, and said, ‘We have patrolled the earth, and behold, all the earth is peaceful and quiet." (Zechariah 1:10,11)

21. ALTHOUGH HIS DISCIPLES SLEPT, JESUS WAS NOT ALONE IN THE GARDEN OF PRAYER, FOR AN ANGEL FROM HEAVEN WAS PRESENT AND STRENGTHENED HIM. "Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. and being in agony he was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground." (Luke 22:43,44)

22. ANGELS ARE CURIOUS. "It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven - things into which angels long to look. Therefore, gird your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." (I Peter 1:12,13)

23. ANGELS WILL BE JUDGED BY US. "Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest law courts? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, matters of this life?" (I Corinthians 6:2,3)

24. ANGELS PROPHESY AND INTERPRET DREAMS. "But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins." (Matthew 1:20,21)

25. OUR LORD HIMSELF APPEARED AS AN ANGEL TO JACOB, GIDEON AND MENOAH...ONLY TO MENTION A FEW. If this had not been the Lord, He would have constrained them when they began to worship and pay tribute to Him, just as the angel did in the revelation when John fell down to worship him. "Yes, he wrestled with the angel and prevailed; he wept and sought his favor. He found Him at Bethel, and there He spoke with us, even the Lord, the God of hosts; the Lord is His name." (Hosea 12:4,5)

26. THE TOMB OF JESUS WAS NEVER EMPTY, FOR THE ANGELS WERE THERE AND PROCLAIMED THE FIRST RESURRECTION STORY. "But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; and she beheld two angels in whit sitting, one at the head, and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying." (John 20:11,12)

27. SATAN WAS AN ANOINTED CHERUB, BUT HE HAS THE ABILITY TO DISGUISE HIMSELF AS AN ANGEL OF LIGHT (THEREFORE AS A MESSENGER). "And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their deeds." (II Corinthians 11:14,15)

28. HELL WAS NOT PREPARED FOR MAN, BUT WAS PREPARED FOR THE DEVIL AND HIS ANGELS. If you force yourself into Hell by purposely rejecting Christ, you will be going to a place not at all prepared for you...God prepared Heaven for you. "And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’ Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels." (Matthew 25:40,41)

29. ANGELS CAN APPEAR AS WINDS AND FLAMES OF FIRE. "And of the angels He says, ‘Who makes His angels winds, and His ministers a flame of fire.’ But of the Son He says, ‘Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom." (Hebrews 1:7,8)

30. ANGELS CANNOT SEPARATE US FROM THE LOVE OF GOD. "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor thing present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38,39)

31. ANGELS REJOICE OVER REPENTANT SINNERS. "And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!’ In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." (Luke 15;9,10)

32. ANGELS ARE NOT ALWAYS RECOGNIZABLE. Only seraphim and cherubim are mentioned in scripture as having wings, and never does it mention that angels have halos. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it. remember the prisoners, as though in prison with them, and those who are ill-treated, since you yourselves also are in the body." (Hebrews 13:2,3)

33. ANGELS ARE SO STRONG THAT IT TOOK ONLY ONE TO KILL 185,000 ASSYRIANS...AND NOW THEY ARE FIGHTING ON YOUR TEAM. Then it happened that night that the angel of the Lord went out, and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men rose early in the morning, behold, all of them were dead. So Sennacherib, king of Assyria, departed and returned home and lived at Nineveh." (II Kings 19:35,36)

34. ANGELS WERE CHARGED TO GUARD JESUS IN ALL HIS WAYS. This is why they are mentioned more in the Gospels and Revelation...because where Jesus was, the angels were en masse. "For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways. They will bear you up in their hands, lest you strike your foot against a stone." (Psalm 91:11,12)

35. AN ANGEL ALMOST DESTROYED JERUSALEM. "So the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning until the appointed time; and seventy thousand men of the people from Dan to Beersheba died. When the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented from the calamity, and said to the angel who destroyed the people, ‘It is enough! Now relax your hand!’ And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing floor of Arunah the Jebusite." (II Samuel 24:15,16)

36. ANGELS ARE IN CONSTANT WARFARE AGAINST SATAN AND HIS AGENTS. Many times they are mentioned as driving chariots of fire pulled by the only earthly animal mentioned that will be in heaven, the horse. "Then he said to me, ‘Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia." (Daniel 10:12,13)

37. ANGELS CAN CAUSE THE EARTH TO QUAKE AND MOUNTAINS TO TREMBLE. "Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it." Matthew 28:1,2)

38. ANGELS DESIRE TO COMFORT US. "And the angel answered and said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying." (Matthew 28:5,6)

39. MAN IS CREATED LOWER THAN THE ANGELS. "But one has testified somewhere, saying, ‘What is man, that Thou rememberest him? Or the son of man, that Thou art concerned about him? Thou hast made him for a little while lower than the angels; Thou has crowned him with glory and honor, and has appointed him over the works of Thy hands." (Hebrews 2:6,7)

40. ANGELS DIFFER IN CLASS, CALLING and RANK. The list is not exhaustive and not necessarily in this order: Seraphim, cherubim, archangel, princes. "But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, ‘The Lord rebuke you.’ But these men revile the things which they do not understand; and the things which they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed." (Jude 9,10)

41. ANGELS ARE NOT TO BE WORSHIPPED. "Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, and not holding fast to be head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God." (Colossians 2:18,19)

42. ANGELS ARE NOT TO PREACH "ANOTHER GOSPEL". Only fools rush in where angels fear to tread. "But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to that which you received, let him be accursed." (Galatians 1:8,9)

43. ANGELS CAN CAUSE AFFLICTIONS. "And the people kept crying out, ‘The voice of a god and not of a man!’ And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died." (Acts 12:22,23)

44. ANGELS ARE ALWAYS OF MASCULINE GENDER WHEN MENTIONED IN SCRIPTURE AND WHEN REVEALED IN HUMAN FORM. "And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud voice, ‘Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment had come; and worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters." (Revelation 14:6,7)

45. ANGELS WILL CAST THE UNSAVED INTO A FURNACE OF FIRE. "The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 13:41,42)

46. ANGELS WILL GATHER TOGETHER THOSE WHO ARE SAVED. "And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other." (Matthew 24:30,31)

47. IN GREAT GLORY ANGELS WILL RETURN WITH JESUS, LED BY A SHOUT FROM THE ARCHANGEL, MICHAEL. "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord." (I Thessalonians 4:16,17)

48. ALL ANGELS WILL BE PRESENT AT THE JUDGMENT WHEN JESUS IS UNVEILED IN HIS FATHER’S GLORY. Man has never before seen Jesus in full glory...neither did the friends of the bridegroom (the prophets and disciples). "But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats." (Matthew 25:31,32)

49. 72,000 ANGELS (TWELVE LEGIONS - 6,000 TO A LEGION) WERE WAITING FOR CHRIST’S COMMAND AT HIS HOUR OF BETRAYAL, AND ANY ONE OF THEM COULD HAVE, AND GLADLY WOULD HAVE, RESCUED HIM...BUT JESUS WILLINGLY LAID DOWN HIS LIFE FOR YOU. "Then Jesus said to him, ‘Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels?" (Matthew 26:52,53)

50. Angels are mentioned about three hundred times in the Bible. The first description of an angel appears in Genesis 16:7, the last in Revelation 22:16. The angel is portrayed at the beginning as carrying a message from God, and in the closing chapter of scripture as carrying a message from Christ.

Charmedwishes...
Blessed be!

Top 10 Uncomfortable Bible Stories

The Bible – it’s one of the most popular and best-selling books in the world. Spanning a couple thousand years of history, it touches upon a wide range of subject matters. In it we find stories about origins, human nature, kingdoms, salvation, and the end of the world. Life and death, happiness and despair, good and evil. All of this, and more.


There’s plenty of inspiration to be found in the Bible, but sometimes the narratives can make you cringe. What follows below are a few stories that might have made the characters involved feel a little (or a lot) on the awkward side of things.

10. Adam and Eve introduce awkwardness to the human race (Genesis 3)

To kick this list off, let’s begin with the story about how Adam and Eve, the first man and woman, discovered what feeling awkward was like.


In the middle of the entire Garden of Eden God had created for them, only one tree was off-limits. They could eat any fruit they wanted, so long as they stayed away from that one tree. Thanks to the crafty serpent, however, they chose to ignore God’s command. As a result, they became aware of their own nakedness (yes, there were other consequences, but let’s just focus on this one).


Think of how uncomfortable you would feel if, after having lived in oblivious nudity without any feelings of shame, you took a bite of contraband fruit and suddenly realized, “Whoa – I’m naked!”


Bonus awkward points: In addition to their new-found sense of shame, the prospect of facing God and explaining why they couldn’t follow one little rule must have been equally awkward (and terrifying) for the two partners in crime.

9. Talking to a donkey (Numbers 22)

Most people would agree that receiving correction can be a humbling and awkward ordeal, but then again most people don’t receive correction from their donkeys. And that’s apparently what happened to a prophet named Balaam.


In Numbers 22, King Balak of the Moabites, worried about Israel’s military advantage, decided to request Balaam’s services, which consisted mainly of blessing and/or cursing people depending on God’s instruction.


Having received divine permission to visit the Moabite king, Balaam saddled up his donkey and hit the road. However, God became angry and dispatched an angel with a sword to block Balaam’s path and force the donkey to stop. For some reason, Balaam couldn’t see the angel and kept beating the frightened beast, until finally it complained about the abuse by talking to him.




Awkward, yes, but apparently getting owned by a donkey wasn’t awkward enough for Balaam, who carried on a conversation with it until he finally saw the angel. Whoops.


Bonus: King Balak, who was hoping for some juicy curses against Israel, ended up with his own serving of awkward – he got four oracles that blessed Israel instead!

8. One hundred Philistine foreskins (1 Samuel 18)

Before the handsome, successful, and wildly popular David became Israel’s king, he had to put up with a rather jealous King Saul, who hated his guts and wanted him dead. Chucking spears at David wasn’t working out very well for Saul, so when he discovered that his daughter Michal was in love with David, he had an idea – put David in a situation that would result in his death at the hands of Israel’s enemies, the Philistines.


In order to win Michal’s hand, Saul declared, David would need to bring in the foreskins of one hundred Philistines. In other words, if David wanted to marry Michal, he had to go slaughter a hundred enemy soldiers and bring back the proof.


Technically, the task was a suicide mission, so when David and his men actually returned (with a surplus), Saul was understandably shocked and had to hand over his daughter.


“What, you’re still alive? And you’ve got 100 – no, 200!? – Philistine trophies with you, too? This is awkward…”

7. Noah gets naked (Genesis 9)

You’ve just survived a worldwide flood. Life has been almost completely annihilated. You and your immediate family members are now responsible for repopulating the face of the earth. So what do you do about it? Plant yourself a vineyard, brew some wine, get sloshed, and then pass out naked in your tent.


This isn’t such a bad thing by itself, but while Noah was still unconscious his son Ham walked in. Instead of honoring his old man by covering him up, Ham made a joke about it to his brothers Shem and Japheth, who responded by walking backwards into Noah’s tent and improving his modesty without observing their father’s nakedness.


Those who understand the effects alcohol has on one’s behavior can probably relate to the awkwardness Noah might have felt when he awoke (“I did what!?”).


Bonus: Ham had it coming, too. Noah was pretty upset to hear that his youngest son had been disrespectful, and Ham ended up with a curse of slavery on his family line. Explain that one to your kids!

6. Haman forced to honor Mordecai (Esther 6)

As a high-ranking official in the court of the Persian King Xerxes, Haman was offended one day when a Jew named Mordecai refused to show him the courtesy of a respectful bow. To get revenge for his injured ego, Haman convinced King Xerxes to let him issue a decree that would legalize the extermination of all Jews throughout the kingdom (overreaction, anyone?).


What Haman didn’t realize was that the recently instated Queen Esther happened to be a Jew – and Mordecai’s cousin. In addition, Mordecai was directly responsible for supplying information to Esther which exposed a plot to assassinate the king. Since Esther was able to put in a good word for Mordecai, the king decided to honor him.


Xerxes went to Haman for advice about how to honor a man who had pleased the king. Haman, self-importantly assuming that he himself was the one to be honored, came up with an idea in terms of what he would have liked for himself. Unfortunately, Xerxes then ordered him to carry it out for Mordecai.


Thus, an embarrassed Haman was forced to lead Mordecai – dressed in royal robes and mounted on a royal horse – through the city streets, announcing to everyone that the king approved of Mordecai, the man he despised.

5. Jesus outs his own betrayer (John 13)

Traitors generally prefer to remain anonymous, at least until they have fulfilled their objective. However, if the person you want to betray happens to be the Messiah, you might find yourself unable to maintain typical standards of secrecy.
Judas is famous for accepting payment to lead Jesus into enemy hands. Interestingly, his plot was brought to light by Jesus himself while the disciples were eating the Passover meal one night.
After announcing that a traitor was in their midst, Jesus decided to make Judas’s secret plans obsolete by specifically pointing him out. “Want to know who’s going to betray me? Okay, I’ll give the guilty party this piece of bread,” Jesus said. “Here, Judas – have a piece of bread.” Judas, confused and surprised by this incident, headed out to gather a mob of people to arrest Jesus later that night in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Bonus: the greeting kiss by which Judas identified Jesus to the soldiers (Matthew 26) was probably a pretty awkward one, wouldn’t you agree?

4. God confirms his covenant with Abram (Genesis 17)

When the Lord appeared to the 99-year-old Abram in Genesis 17, he laid out the ground rules for how the covenant between them would be confirmed. In exchange for being the father of many nations, inheriting the land of Canaan, and becoming fruitful, Abram needed to 1) walk blamelessly before the Lord, 2) change his name to ‘Abraham’, and 3) cut off part of his penis.
Say what?
Technically, since circumcision was already practiced by other Semitic people groups at that point in history, Abram was probably not too shocked by the revelation that a small part of his anatomy would be going under the knife. Still, I can imagine a brief, awkward silence at this point in the conversation as Abram let this particular aspect of the covenant sink in!

3. God tells Hosea to marry an unfaithful woman (Hosea 1, 3)

The life of an Old Testament prophet was not necessarily a pleasant one. For example, in the case of Hosea – who prophesied in Israel during the reign of the wicked King Jeroboam – God had a pretty awkward idea in mind, namely: Go marry a prostitute. And by the way, she’s going to cheat on you.
There was a point to the apparent madness, of course. Under Jeroboam’s leadership, Israel was too busy sinning to bother following God’s laws and commands. By asking Hosea to take an unfaithful wife, God was essentially comparing the sinful ways of Israel to a woman who is not faithful to her husband.
Just as God predicted, after bearing three children to Hosea, Gomer took another lover. In order to show how devoted he was to the people of Israel, God ordered Hosea to show unconditional love to Gomer by buying her back from the dude she’d been sleeping with.
In a way, this is a beautiful story of forgiveness – but at the same,  it would also be pretty awkward to find yourself mixed up in that kind of situation.

2. Jacob gets the wrong wife (Genesis 29)

What better way to deceive your hard-working nephew and future son-in-law than to promise him one daughter’s hand in marriage, and then trick him into wedding your older daughter? It’s a cold thing to do, but that’s exactly how Uncle Laban decided he would treat Jacob in the book of Genesis.

Laban had two daughters named Leah and Rachel, and the latter’s beauty captivated Jacob. In order to win her as his wife, he agreed to become Laban’s employee for seven years. But when the wedding day finally arrived, the devious Laban, in an effort to marry off his oldest daughter first, dressed up Leah as Jacob’s bride instead of Rachel. The veiled wedding outfit, combined with the darkness of the marriage chamber, prevented Jacob from noticing a problem until the next morning.

How awkward would it be to wake up and realize that the amazing sex with Rachel last night had actually been, um, amazing sex with Leah?

1. Lot and his daughters (Genesis 19)

The story of Lot and his two daughters provides us with yet another example of drunkenness that turned awkward. In certain cases, drinking wine should be avoided, especially if you are living alone in a secluded mountain cave with your kids. You never know when a serious case of incest could strike.

After fleeing from the smoldering wasteland that had been Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and the girls had eventually settled in a mountainous region, which must have been in the middle of nowhere considering what happens next. The two daughters, perhaps working on the assumption that most of the world had been destroyed by fire and brimstone, concluded that in order for them to preserve their family line, they would have to get their father drunk with wine and… yeah.

For two consecutive nights – one night for each daughter – they managed to get their father so completely smashed that he wasn’t aware of what his own children were doing.

I honestly can’t figure it out – would this situation have been more awkward for the daughters, or for Lot when he found out what had happened?

————-

There are probably other examples that might have worked for this list. For instance, I’m sure it felt pretty weird for Isaiah when God told him to walk around naked (Isaiah 20), and it must have been both awkward and terrifying when Joseph’s brothers realized that the annoying brat they had sold into slavery years ago was now the governor of Egypt (Genesis 25).

But take the examples for what they’re worth. Go, and try not to do likewise.

Charmedwishes...
Blessed be!

The Aged Mother

In a large town there was an old woman who sat in the evening alone in her room thinking how she had lost first her husband, then both her children, then one by one all her relatives, and at length, that very day, her last friend, and now she was quite alone and desolate.

She was very sad at heart, and heaviest of all her losses to her was that of her sons, and in her pain she blamed God for it. She was still sitting lost in thought, when all at once she heard the bells ringing for early prayer.

She was surprised that she had thus in her sorrow watched through the whole night, and lighted her lantern and went to church. It was already lighted up when she arrived, but not as it usually was with wax candles, but with a dim light.

It was also crowded already with people, and all the seats were filled, and when the old woman got to her usual place it also was not empty, but the whole bench was entirely full. And when she looked at the people, they were none other than her dead relatives who were sitting there in their old-fashioned garments, but with pale faces.

They neither spoke nor sang, but a soft humming and whispering was heard all over the church. Then an aunt of hers stood up, stepped forward, and said to the poor old woman, look there beside the altar, and you will see your sons.

The old woman looked there, and saw her two children, one hanging on the gallows, the other bound to the wheel. Then said the aunt,behold, so would it have been with them if they had lived, and if the good God had not taken them to himself when they were innocent children.

The old woman went trembling home, and on her knees thanked God for having dealt with her more kindly than she had been able to understand, and on the third day she lay down and died.





Charmedwishes...

Blessed be!

Sleeping Time!

Okay guys, time for me to lay my head on a pillow, close my eyes, and dream about my Prince Charming again. I would like to thank again the people who took time to read my post and visit my blog. My warmest thanks to you! Please do remember to visit my blog again.

If you are in the Philippines, my numbers are +639102881159, +639156974799 and +639229981159. Feel free to text me or to even call. I would do my best to accomodate you.

Lately I have been hearing from people questioning my religion. Now, I know I have said already that I am Catholic and that I dabble in witchcraft. I don't wish to defend myself, my personal beliefs are just that, PERSONAL. I certainly don't impose my beliefs on other people, hopefully those people would do the same.

Well, that's all for now! I love you guys, take care!



Charmedwishes...

Blessed be!

Are You An Angel?

A young woman had been to Wednesday night Bible Study. The pastor had shared about listening to God and obeying the Lord's voice. The young woman couldn't help but wonder,
"Does God still speak to people?"
After service, she went out with some friends for coffee and pie and they discussed the message. Several different ones talked about how God had led them in different ways. It was about ten o'clock when the young woman started driving home. Sitting in her car, she just began to pray,
"God...If you still speak to people, speak to me.
I will listen. I will do my best to obey."
As she drove down the main street of her town, she had the strangest thought to stop and buy a gallon of milk. She shook her head and said out loud,
"God is that you?"
She didn't get a reply and started on toward home. But again, the thought, buy a gallon of milk. The young woman thought about Samuel and how he didn't recognize the voice of God, and how little Samuel ran to Eli.
"Okay, God, in case that is you, I will buy the milk."
It didn't seem like too hard a test of obedience. She could always use the milk. She stopped and purchased the gallon of milk and started off toward home. As she passed Seventh Street, she again felt the urge,
"Turn down that street."
This is crazy she thought and drove on past the intersection. Again, she felt that he should turn down Seventh Street. At the next intersection, she turned back and headed down Seventh. Half jokingly, she said out loud,
"Okay, God, I will."
She drove several blocks, when suddenly, she felt like she should stop. She pulled over to the curb and looked around. She was in a semi-commercial area of town. It wasn't the best but it wasn't the worst of neighborhoods either. The businesses were closed and most of the houses looked dark like the people were already in bed. Again, she sensed something,
"Go and give the milk to the people in the house across the street."
The young woman looked at the house. It was dark and it looked like the people were either gone or they were already asleep. She started to open the door and then sat back in the car seat.
"Lord, this is insane. Those people are asleep and if I wake them up, they are going to be mad and I will look stupid."
Again, she felt like he should go and give the milk. Finally, she opened the door.
"Okay God, if this is you, I will go to the door and I will give them the milk. If you want me to look like a crazy person, okay. I want to be obedient. I guess that will count for something but if they don't answer right away, I am out of here."
She walked across the street and rang the bell. She could hear some noise inside. A man's voice yelled out,
"Who is it? What do you want?"
Then the door opened before the young woman could get away. The man was standing there in his jeans and t-shirt. He looked like he just got out of bed. He had a strange look on his face and he didn't seem too happy to have some stranger standing on his doorstep.
"What is it?"
The young woman thrust out the gallon of milk.
"Here I brought this to you."
The man took the milk and rushed down a hallway, speaking loudly in Spanish. Then from down the hall came a woman carrying the milk toward the kitchen. The man was following her holding a baby. The baby was crying. The man had tears streaming down his face. The man began speaking and half-crying,
"We were just praying. We had some big bills this month and we ran out of money. We didn't have any milk for our baby. I was just praying and asking God to show me how to get some milk."
His wife in the kitchen yelled out,
"I ask him to send an Angel with some. Are you an Angel?"
The young woman reached into her purse and pulled out all the money she had on him and put in the man's hand. She turned and walked back toward her car and the tears were streaming down her face.
She knew that God still answers prayers.

Charmedwishes...

Blessed be!

True Stories Behind 4 Exorcisms

Maybe it’s my nature as a writer, but after I have certain experiences I have to learn I possibly can about whatever it was that I experienced. After I watch a movie I rush to IMDB to check out the trivia. After I visit someplace I find particularly intriguing, I scour the Internet and check out books and watch movies.

My point is, I was watching The Exorcism of Emily Rose the other day on DVD and got all caught up in researching the real story behind the movie. This, of course, lead to other stories of real-life exorcisms. I’m shocked at how… well… not commonplace exorcisms are, but how they’re not quite as unusual as you might think. The identities of people who have been exorcised are usually kept pretty quiet, but with just one priest claiming to have performed more than 50,000 exorcisms (granted, he is the senior exorcist of the Diocese of Rome), there are more out there than you might think. We’re going to look at a few.

Anneliese Michel

Let’s start with the exorcism of Anneliese Michel, the girl Emily Rose was based on. Anneliese was a deeply religious German Catholic woman who said she was possessed by at least six demons, including Hitler, Nero and Cain. Father Ernst Alt, a local parish priest who also happened to be a specialist in exorcism, was the first to recognize that she may need an exorcism. When medication failed to control her symptoms (including contortions, multiple personalities and the use of multiple voices) the exorcism was approved by the bishop and carried out by Pastor Arnold Renz. She died on July 1, 1976 – the day that Anneliese predicted she would be freed from the demons. Those present say she was freed moments before her death, but her official cause of death was listed as malnutrition and dehydration (she weighed just 68 pounds) resulting from the treatment she was subjected to over the 11 months of exorcism rituals.

Robbie Doe

Then there’s that other famous exorcism movie starring Linda Blair. That was based on a real incident too, one that took place in 1949. Robbie Doe has never been identified (at least as far as I could tell) but he was supposedly possessed after using a Ouija board. He was taken to the Georgetown Hospital where he started to receive an exorcism from Father Edward Hughes. Father Hughes was five minutes into the ritual when the boy somehow dislodged a spring from the bed and stabbed him with it. The gash required 100 stitches.
The family moved to St. Louis where the boy underwent another exorcism, this one lasting six weeks. Just like the movie, the bed would shake and objects flew across the room of their own accord. Marks would appear on Robbie’s body, including the word “Evil”. Finally, the exorcism succeeded and the boy was able to live a normal life, not remembering much about what happened.
Such a view seems contrary to the findings of the physician and psychiatrist who deemed the boy physically and mentally healthy while he was experiencing these troubles in Maryland.

Earling, Iowa, woman

Father Theophilus Riesinger brought a 40-year-old woman from a neighboring community to the Franciscan convent in Earling to undergo an exorcism. Despite being very religious, the woman said she was unable to enter a church or pray since she was 14. She also spoke in languages she didn’t know, was abnormally strong and couldn’t stand to be around Holy Water or anything that had been blessed.
The evening the woman arrived, a nun who prepared dinner sprinkled the meal with Holy Water to bless the food. When the woman was given her plate, she freaked out and demanded an unblessed plate.

When the exorcism started the next morning and continued for the next 23 days. According to the pamphlet that details the events of the exorcism, Begone Satan!:

“Outpourings that would fill a pitcher, yes, even a pail, full of the most obnoxious stench were most unnatural. These came in quantities that were, humanly speaking, impossible to lodge in a normal being. At that the poor creature had eaten scarcely anything for weeks, so that there had been reason to fear she would not survive. At one time the emission was a bowl full of matter resembling vomited macaroni. At another time an even greater measure, having the appearance of sliced and chewed tobacco leaves, was emitted. From ten to twenty times a day this wretched creature was forced to vomit though she had taken at the most only a teaspoonful of water or milk by way of food.”

She spoke in different languages and different voices and named sins that people in the room had committed. On the 23rd day of the ordeal, Father Theophilus sensed that the demons were weakening and blessed her. The woman started howling and screaming the names of the demons inside of her; when the last name was uttered the woman opened her eyes and was reportedly able to speak the name of Jesus again for the first time in years.

Teenager at the Vatican

Pope John Paul II reportedly performed an exorcism on a 19-year-old girl at the Vatican in 2000. Father Gabriele Amorth, the official exorcist for the Diocese of Rome, had attempted to exorcise the girl the day before and failed. Her parents brought her to Pope John Paul II’s Wednesday audience in St. Peter’s Square in hopes that a Papal blessing would do her some good, but apparently it just incensed her even more. Italian newspapers wrote that the girl started screaming insults at the Pope in a “cavernous voice” and struggled with guards with superhuman strength. The Pope was informed about her and spent 30 minutes with her. When the Pope left, the girl said (in a voice apparently not belonging to her), “Not even the head of the church can send me away.”

Charmedwishes...

Blessed be!