In need of an angel

The Women's Aglow retreat is a Christian women's retreat that I went to for many years. It was a chance to relax, find peace and find God ,whom I seem to frequently misplace in the frantic pace of my life. I enjoy writing Christian songs and poems, although I'm not very prolific. I could always count on God giving me at least one during retreat time. This retreat was a little different.

I also enjoy exploring my creative side in many other ways. I was working on angel dolls at this particular time. I used dolls that I found at flea markets and yard sales, crocheting the dresses and making the wings from wicker butterflies, satin and lace. I was working on an angel when the retreat time rolled around, so I took her with me to complete.

I had put this particular doll in the wash as her cloth body was soiled. She had red hair in a ponytail and bright blue eyes. When I took her out of the machine, I found that not only was she clean, but her eyelashes had fallen off. This didn't bother me as I knew they would be simple to replace.

This was a weekend retreat. On Friday night I set about completing my angel. She still needed her wings, bloomers and eyelashes. I only got as far as her wings before I went to bed.

Saturday morning was a busy time, going to classes. The speaker that morning spoke of his Jewish heritage and blew the ram's horn. He also talked about angels and how we all had a guardian angel watching over us. As he spoke, I started to feel that the angel I had brought with
me needed to be given away to someone at the retreat. This was someone who had a strong need to hold her guardian angel in a physical sense. I was also not to complete her, leaving her without her bloomers and eyelashes. Anyone who knows me knows that this was difficult, as I tend to be a perfectionist with my creations.

God also gave me a psalm at this time which was to given to this person along with the angel. It is called "God's Grace".



You don't have to wait until you are perfect
To send His message forward.
He can use your imperfections
To reflect His precious light.
People need to see
That you can be
Perfect in Him
And in sharing your
Burdens,
Bless others.

For they will see
That He can see
Past your outward roughness
To the needs in your soul.

Even a diamond needs to be faceted
By cuts and blows
To bring out it's true beauty.
So shall your soul be polished
In the cuts and blows
Of your trials and tribulations.
He polishes the mirror of your soul
With his love,
Allowing others to see His reflection
In you.

I brought the angel and psalm to the speaker after the meeting, asking for prayer so that the angel would go to the right person. I showed him the psalm first. After reading it he asked "is this for me?" meaning the psalm. I then noticed that his skull was deformed (imperfect). I told him I would be glad to make him a copy. I noticed a lady standing outside the meeting hall with her arms loaded with books and notebooks. I asked her for some paper, explaining what it was for. When she put down her books I noticed that one shoulder was higher than the other. She also requested a copy of the psalm anhd suggested that I aske the front desk to make copies. They made me 5 at no charge.

I carried that angel with me wherever I went Saturday. People had many suggestions as to whom she should go to, but none struck me as being the right one. Sunday morning, I continued my search. As we were sitting at breakfast, my aunt said she knew who it had to go to. She was staying with a friend at the convention. The friend had a teenaged daughter there who had just recently left a satanic cult. One of the things she did (in the cult) was to cut herself with knives. She had been doing really well until the night before, when she again found a knife and was cutting her arms. She felt that God couldn't possibly want her now that she had backslidden.

I walked around the table where we were sitting and placed the angel in her arms, then handed her the psalm. I explained that her angel wasn't perfect because God wanted her to know that His love for her wasn't dependent on perfection.

I only saw her briefly after that but I heard from several other people that she kept her angel with her constantly and was much happier. About a month later, I got a phone call from my aunt requesting another copy of the psalm, as the girl had lost her copy. I sent the copy to my aunt, knowing that God's love was continuing to work in this girl's life.