This is from an anonymous Unblog reader…
An Unseen Angel and Unexpected Answer to Prayer
I love reading about angels and how they actively work in the lives of so many still today. I can’t seem to read enough books about near-death experiences and the accounts of the influence of angels in early church history.
Ever since I came to know how truly close and actively involved the spirit world is with our mortal world, I’ve had a desire to thin the veil that separates the two worlds so that I could better see and understand things “as they really are.” Despite this desire, I have not seen or been ministered to by angels directly or had any profound heavenly manifestation that involves hearing and seeing. In fact, more often than not, I’ve felt I could relate to Lorenzo Snow’s lament once during prayer, that the “heavens seemed like brass over my head.”
But I have felt the powerfully transcending change of the baptism of fire, moments of divine warning and protection, the miracle of having a child preserved by the aid of angels and healed through the power of God, the unmistakable influence of loved ones who have passed on in my greatest times of need, and so many quiet affirmations of peace, truth, and answers through that still small voice that assure me that indeed, “miracles have not ceased,” nor have angels (seen and unseen) “ceased to minister unto the children of men.” (Moroni 7:29).
As our Savior assured, “All things are possible to him that believeth.” And with all humble followers we plead, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” (Mark 9:23-24)
From Unbelief to Belief
Early last year I was re-reading brother John’s wonderful post on the damaging nature of unbelief, and how to overcome it. It caused me to consider the level of faith I had in Jesus Christ as my Savior, as well as the accompanying belief in life after death, angels, and proximity of the spirit world. I realized that though I felt I had strong faith in Jesus Christ and a belief in this spiritual reality, John’s post also helped me identify an erroneous “belief” I harbored that I may never be fit for that great promise of D&C 93:1, nor the direct ministry of angels that can serve to prepare an individual for sacred blessings that turn faith and belief to sure knowledge.
I determined that day that I would try harder to cast away my unbelief, and take John’s challenge to simply believe more fully, taking heart in these words of encouragement from his post:
“The scriptures promise us that these same blessings are ours to claim, so believe in your right to claim them. Tell yourself you believe them. Tell God in prayer that you believe them. Remind yourself hourly if necessary, that you believe these promises apply to you personally. Herein lies a key: If you do this something astonishing will happen – you will find that once you believe, nothing doubting, that the heavens do not have the ability to withhold them from your sight.”
Catching the Drift
For the next several days I did just that. I told myself regularly that I believed, and told God in prayer that I believed. Feeling wholly inadequate and ill-prepared to seek out some of the greatest blessings promised in the scriptures–but still having a desire to work on dissipating unbelief as a starting point–I focused the exercise on simply believing that thinning the veil was even possible. I soon felt the prompting to be more specific in what I was asking. So I began praying specifically to know whether I was indeed in the company of angels daily, and if so, that I would be more sensitive to recognizing their influence or presence. I’m not sure how I expected the Lord to answer my question, but anticipated something akin to the way I receive the majority of my answers, which has been to guide me to reading material in the scriptures, good books, or online that teach or confirm a truth through the Spirit.
The answer I did receive during this exercise on belief was entirely unexpected.
After a couple of weeks of praying for an answer, one evening, I knelt in prayer by my bedside as I did every night, facing my nightstand with the bed on my left. My two-year old daughter lay asleep on my bed, where she often ends up before we move her to her own bed. I began my prayer just like I had in past nights, thanking the Lord, repenting, and then repeating the question I had on my mind concerning the company of angels, and asking the Lord to help increase my belief and sensitivity to their presence.
This particular evening, while still in prayer, in mid-sentence, and with my eyes closed, I suddenly felt my hands spontaneously move from their clasped position in front of me to be separated at my left side, now parallel to the bed, with my palms up. Before I had a chance to mutter a “What in the world?” or “Um…why did my hands just move?”, I felt a familiar head of hair fall neatly into my right hand and diapered baby bum fall into my left. I quickly opened my eyes and saw my young daughter, still sound asleep, nestled perfectly within the palms of my hands. Apparently she had fallen off the bed during my prayer, and I unknowingly caught her just in time with my eyes closed!
I admit my first reaction to the incident was to let out a laugh of shock, and the thought amusingly crossed my mind that this must be what having super powers feels like! The abruptness of the experience and incredulity of the surprising “catch” with my own hands when I didn’t know she was falling was really kind of comical. I knew very well that it wasn’t really me who caught her, as no signal from my brain told my hands to move!
Then the realization hit that I was just given the most direct answer to prayer that I had ever received — ironically while in mid-prayer — and the first uniquely physical answer I’d ever received, not one given by thought or spiritual feeling, but the actual involuntary movement of my physical hands by an unseen force. Given that the specific question I had been asking the Lord to answer concerned the presence of angels, I knew without a doubt that the force that moved my hands came from an unseen angel who was indeed in my company. In humble gratitude and awe, I thanked the Lord for the unequivocal answer to prayer, and thanked the angel beside me for helping save my daughter from the painful fall, and simultaneously escalating my belief.
Lessons Learned
To the few friends and family I’ve shared this small miracle with, the response has understandably been an underwhelmed, “Wow, that’s pretty cool.” I don’t expect anyone else to be profoundly affected by this modest and very personal manifestation from the spirit world.
However, for me, the answer to prayer has changed my life in several ways:
1. My once tenuous belief has now turned to undeniable knowledge that the spirit world exists, and that angels do watch over us.
2. I know that the Lord hears our prayers, and is willing to acknowledge and readily answer even the most trivial questions and attempts to increase our faith and belief. The Lord could have easily let my daughter fall off the bed and bump her head, as she had once in the past. He could have sent divine help to just keep her on the bed rather than fall. But instead, He enlisted an angel, perhaps a loved one I have known, to be on His errand and use the opportunity to help increase the faith of one of his mortal children. What a tender mercy.
3. The Lord has a sense of humor. 🙂 The improbable incident put a smile on my face and I bet that angel got quite the kick out of my shocked reaction. It was rather cool to catch my daughter with my eyes closed, after all.
4. I know that this small manifestation from the other side is an important stepping stone in the uphill climb toward obtaining the faith required to rend that veil of unbelief that conceals the revelation of all things that the brother of Jared saw. Experiencing a direct physical encounter with the spirit world has given me renewed hope that claiming great blessings in accordance with our obedience and faith is indeed possible for all His mortal children.
5. Last, to the many who continue to feel that the heavens are as “brass” over your head, I want to testify that if a profound answer can come to this very ordinary Latter-day Saint mom in direct response to a sincere exercise of faith, great blessings and answers can also come to you!
As our Savior assured, “All things are “possible to him that believeth.” (Mark 9:23)
All my love,
A fellow UnBlog reader
UnBlogmysoul 
Dear Anonymous, thank you for this post. I had exactly the same experience years ago that I will briefly share so to add confirmation to yours as you have to mine.
My case, I was a college student working as a tech at a wind tunnel, where they were setting up a smoke installation above the test section – used to get visuals of the airflow. The setup involved removing steel grated floor sections from the floor directly above me. I was sitting in a chair yackin’ it up with one of the other techs, my head turned sideways toward him, when suddenly in mid-sentence I felt myself flinch, kind of like you do when your just falling asleep, and I also noticed some stinging suddenly coming from my forearms.
I turned my head forward to see myself holding a 8 x 2 foot steel grated floor section in front of me, it resting vertically and the width nestled snugly between my forearms, with abrasions where the metal had scraped them. My first reaction was, where did this come from? I thought the guys upstairs must have handed me this floor section as a hint to stop yackin’ and help with the smoke setup. Then I realized it wasn’t resting on the ground, but was hanging by a hinge right above my head and the guys upstairs were yelling frantically because they accidentally let the grating fall through and it swung like a baseball bat right for my head. They yelled, “ARE YOU OK!?!?!?”, as well as other choice words I won’t use here. When I responded calmly that I was ok, there were sighs of relief and exclamations of, “Thank God for fast reflexes!!”
As I began to piece together what had happened I realized my arms had been instantaneously placed exactly where they needed to be to stop the impact of the swinging grate with minimal injury. Had my hands been closer in, my wrists or fingers would have likely been broken, and if it had hit the side of my head unimpeded, I might not be here today. As it stood, my forearms were angled just right so it completely missed my hands and the grate skidded between them to a stop, and all I lost was a little skin in the process.
I knew it was divine intervention. I also seemed to know it was angelic in nature and gave a silent prayer of thanks. I was an unmarried returned missionary at the time – I suspect it could have been one of my children to be, or an ancestor perhaps. Our common experience was that sudden, precise, involuntary movement to catch something unseen in order to avoid harm (Too bad they don’t work during ball games though, at least not for me anyway…). That was over 20 years ago. I don’t recall ever hearing anyone describe quite the same experience until now. What marvelous witnesses of the reality of unseen guardians in God’s service to protect us! Thank you again for sharing!
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Wow James, thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience!
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Thank you everyone for your kind and uplifting comments that have left me with a deep love for this wonderful community of seekers here on the UnBlog. I felt so strongly I needed to write my experience down for the benefit of others. Thank you Terri for allowing it to be shared here, and thank you for sacrificing and supporting your husband’s time and efforts to be on the Lord’s errand so he could share more of the Light of Christ with the world. His writings have literally changed my life and continue to inspire so many through your work compiling his posts in Journey to the Veil and upkeep of this blog. Thank you all again, and may we all realize the great blessing of Moroni 7:48 as we strive together in this journey to become more like Him, our Savior.
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What a very sweet manifestation you have had to show you that the Lord is indeed watching over you. The first thought I had a I read about your desire to learn all you could about spiritual manifestations and near-death experiences, I saw that you already believe far more than you think you did, even before you had the manifestation with your daughter.
Many times in my own life I have had spiritual experiences that involve the feelings of the Holy Ghost and some, though few, of those where I have actually heard things or seen things. But I feel that the many spiritual experiences with the Holly Ghost have been just as powerful for me as those where I actually have a physical manifestation. Our spirits are powerful and they sense things that are just as real as the physical senses detect.
Sometimes I feel a little sad about the fact that although I have had two times in my life where I know because of events that transpired afterwards (i.e., things I somehow “knew” when I shouldn’t have) that I have left my body and travelled elsewhere — but I have no memory at all of those events while I was gone. I guess, in a way, I envy Spencer his experiences. I don’t really “envy” him in a worldly sense of it, but more from the aspect that I wish I could remember more of what happened to me during my times away from my body.
Then again, I have seen my husband’s miraculous experiences he has had during his lifetime and I see how he struggles with his faith all of the time. In this I remember the Lord’s counsel through his prophets how after a trial of our faith, we see the miracles. When we see them before our faith is fully ripe, we tend to rationalize what we experience and so I am grateful for the little bit that the Lord has chosen to show me of my life’s path and how to follow His life.
I was once an LDS bookseller who had a small bookstore in my home. I had a customer come into my bookstore one day and she was buying a book about our pioneer heritage, as I recall. She said to me, “Sometimes I just wish we experienced the great miracles of our ancestors today.” I just looked at her and said, “We are experiencing many miracles, the only reason we are not more aware of them is because we cannot look into the journals of our fellow Saints today — but our descendants will marvel at all of the miracles we are still experiencing daily.” So, fellow Unblog reader and now writer, stay on the path you are on — you are where you need to be and one day you will have the greatest desires of your heart revealed to you. Continue in faith and prayer. The Lord is near and so are His servants, those who love you more than you can possibly imagine. Remember that the experiences we read of in Spencer’s life and John’s life are culminations of many, many years of faith and prayer, pondering, and questions. When we read it in a few hundred pages, it seems as if it Is continuous, but Spencer even tells us that he was confused at some of the experiences he had and what they meant and he was counseled to wait for the interpretation. You have a small child — you are young… My best advice comes from Rachel in VoG, “Behold the Majesty of the Lord.” We just need to be patient and it will come. May God bless you for your thoughts and your very honest desires for manifestations of righteousness.
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So sweet, so natural, so beautiful! I believe these powerful, yet subtle presentations of help from the unseen world come at us more often then we even realize. Awareness is an important part of seeing, then acknowledging and embracing these expressions of help and love. Thanks so much for that wonderfully uplifting experience and the 5 points thereafter.
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An inspiring post! I haven’t had any of my own veil parting experiences however when my father was a child his baby sister died. As she passed their father who had passed several months earlier appeared to the mother to “take the baby,” thus giving the grieving mother at least the comfort of knowing her child was with her dearly departed husband.
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I too have been touched by lessons of “mine unbelief” and access to all blessings promised to those who live worthy and seek such blessings promised. My experience has become rich and fulfilling, but perhaps different than initially expected. In fact, my expectation slate has become absolutely blank. “Let come what may, and love it.” In the meantime, I have found gifts from God surrounding me in every venue, whether it’s breathing fresh air, eating a meal, watching a humming bird or eating cherries off the cherry trees while passing by. Each little experience has become quite remarkable and far more enjoyable than ever before. I see His hand everywhere, and His creation testifies continually of Him, His glory, power and love. It’s no wonder the first hour of the Temple is spent describing this wonderful creation, all of which was done for us. I suspect our pre-mortal participation was an immense part of our pre-earth training. And I have begun to see angels all all around me.
We have a 10 year old little boy with cerebral palsy living with us these days. He will be stuck around the age of 5 or so. He’s quirky and can’t speak very well and can be very demanding. But this boy is God’s child, and is very much alive in Christ. It is I who need to live up to his standards. God sent this noble spirit into my life to teach me to “be still,” to have faith that God is watching, is in perfect control, knows His children and what they need to return safely home to the greatest glory possible. Now I see angels everywhere, those who taught me the Gospel, Brother John, who opened many doors to my soul, my wife who gave me my children, and who has stood by my side endlessly, giving Bishops, and especially non-members who stretch my love and yearnings to share and teach. These souls lived with God for eons and were reserved for our day, my day, and yours, to bless and share and give and encourage.
I don’t know what I would do without those wonderful people of all kinds, who I know and love. I have not begun to drink deeply of the kind of gratitude I should have for those around me, right now. At the same time, I know angels, those who know me well, are watching and cheering me on from the other side as well. My faith and confidence in God’s love and power has increased as I profess my belief in His promises, given to the prophets of all ages, and to you and me personally in holy writ. I believe Him and His word and trust that He knows my soul, and every soul, and what each individual needs to return home safely. Whatever needs to happen between now and then, is OK with me, because God knows my soul and what needs to happen for me to become like HIm today. I believe drinking deeply of the riches of eternity is available all around us right now, if we have eyes to see and ears to hear and hearts to receive. “Be still and know that I am God” Psalms 46:10, D&C 101:16.
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I very much valued and benefited from this post. Profound thanks for your willingness to share:) Moroni 7:19-32
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What a wonderful, heartwarming way to start the day. Thank you so much for sharing! I feel much closer to the spirit after reading your testimony. It is a gift.
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BEAUTIFUL!!! Thank you so much for your inspired words-they were just what I needed today! God bless you Sister Pontius!!!
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I can’t take credit at all for this beautiful post! It was written by one of you readers, and I feel it is inspired and encouraging to us all.
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Dear Precious Sister,
Thank you for sharing your beautiful story with all of us. I love and appreciate the experience you had, and the learning The Lord taught you as well.
A few years ago I was on my way home from the airport after attending the Unblog Reunion. The Lord had taught me so much that weekend, and I was rejoicing in His goodness as I drove. I found myself uttering a familiar request out loud, “Father…how can I part the veil?” I had asked this question of Father in Heaven many times. This time, however, I heard the voice of The Lord say to me, “My Child…you do not part the veil, I do.” In an instant I remembered specific details of the endowment ceremony in the temple, and many scriptures that teach about Christ’s mercy, power and love. The experience was so humbling and deeply moving. I realized that it was time for me to understand the grace and power of the Savior. In a moment I felt how much the heavens reach out to us, as you said. I no longer felt that I have to be perfect (or even close) to approach the veil and for it to be parted. I realized that the Savior has been giving me divine grace with every breath I have ever taken. He has the power to work miracles in our lives and He does so because He loves us, and if our hearts desire what He desires for us. He is mercy, love and grace…and He will part the veil for us if we will come unto Him and allow His grace to make us Holy.
Again…thank you for sharing your story with us! Praise The Lord for His goodness and mercy!
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I thank you, Alicia, and everyone who has commented here, for truly uplifting me with your spirit and testimony. It is a glorious thing to be on the path of truth-seeking with you all! As you said, Alicia, praise the Lord for His goodness and mercy!
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Thanks for reminding that it is the Lord that parts the veil.
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Alicia, thank you. Your comment closed a gap in my understanding over some things I’ve been pondering for some time. God Bless.
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