Angelic Interventions
“Let brotherly love continue. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels (Hebrews 13:1-2).”
There have been several dramatic interviews with persecuted Christians which I will never forget. During one interview I learned about an Indonesian evangelist who encountered several boys in a remote area after he ran out of gas. The boys eagerly pushed his disabled vehicle to a gas station while singing a Christian hymn and then abruptly disappeared—leaving him wondering whether they were angelic helpers!
Another remarkable Vietnamese evangelist shared excitedly about God’s specific and dramatic intervention in his ministry work. Vietnam is one of the restricted nations VOM has been working in for many years. In spite of intense restrictions, we are honored to hear miraculous accounts of God guiding His people as they faithfully follow him there.
I interviewed a leader from Vietnam recently who told me an amazing story about boldly traveling into an area that he was not authorized to be in. Every step he took was bathed in prayer as he encountered various checkpoints and obstacles, knowing that he was risking imprisonment for talking about Jesus in this difficult region.
As he prayed on the side of the road, asking God for wisdom about his next step, he was surprised when a man stopped his motorbike and asked him if he needed a ride. He gratefully accepted the man’s offer. Just a few minutes later he was shocked, and more than a little bit worried, when the man drove directly to the local police station. The driver ordered him to wait outside. As the evangelist waited for the next 10 minutes, he prayed and wondered what to do—even though I am sure it felt much longer than 10 minutes at the time!
The evangelist believed God was leading him to patiently wait, and a few minutes later the driver of the motorbike emerged from the police station wearing a police uniform with insignia reflecting an influential rank on his shoulder. He hopped back on the motorbike and the police officer and his nervous passenger eased through several checkpoints with a salute and a wave. They were never even asked for identification!
The police officer eventually dropped the evangelist off near his destination and left. Following this bizarre incident, the evangelist decided that God was asking him to follow up and to try to locate the driver. When it was safer, he returned to the same police station and inquired about the driver. As he described the man, his motorbike and his rank, the local police had no idea who he was talking about—the man simply did not exist!
This Vietnamese evangelist is convinced that he was delivered by an angel on a motorbike—and it’s not the first time he’s experienced angelic intervention!
May God guide us as we faithfully follow him with our eyes open to see and our hearts willing to welcome these types of angelic encounters in our own lives.
YOUR TURN: Have you had what you believe to be angelic encounters in your own ministry or life? Share your story in the comments to this post.
Dr. Jason Peters serves in VOM’s International Ministries department, traveling frequently to meet with our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world. He lived overseas for five years and has ministered in 28 countries as diverse as Cuba, Nepal, Iraq and Indonesia. He and his wife, Kimberly, along with their five children, count it a great honor to serve with the persecuted church.