Do You Have a Guardian Angel? from LDSliving.com

Do You Have a Guardian Angel?

KELSEY BERTEAUX - JUNE 27, 2013

Scripture stories and modern revelation speak of angels who watched over prophets. So is it the same today? Is someone watching over you?

Touching stories of angelic emissaries are commonly recounted in LDS meetinghouses. Since we believe in a God who is anxiously engaged in our lives, it’s a heart-warming thought to think that heavenly messengers can intervene for good on our behalf. But are there such things as “guardian angels”? Donald W. Parry, author of Angels: Agents of Light, Love, and Power, says there just might be angels among us.

While “ministering” angels are mentioned 37 times in the standard works, the term “guardian angel” is conspicuously missing. Not absent, however, are stories of angels protecting prophets and acting in a guardian-like role. Take the story of Daniel, for example. When he was unjustly cast into the lions’ den, the Lord sent an angel to shut the lions’ mouths. It was also an angel who delivered Peter from Herod’s prison and Abraham from the priests of Elkenah. 

In more modern times, stories of angels protecting the Saints abound. Joseph Smith wrote of an experience at the Kirtland Temple where six angels were seen surrounding the worshippers to protect them from Satan and his hosts. President David O. McKay also described an experience from a church meeting where James L. McMurrin, then president of the European mission, specifically named two elders as having “guardian angels” in the room, sent to look after them. President Harold B. Lee shared a more personal story of angelic protection, once recounting a young girl’s adamant assurance that her deceased mother visited her in a dream, promising she would stay near and watch over her. But can it be true? Do angels really protect us, and can loved ones really look after us once they’ve passed on?

Less anecdotal are the many reassurances from prophets and apostles that angels do guard and watch over us. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland  testified, “Angels are still sent to help us, even as they were sent to help Adam and Eve” [emphasis in original]. Elder Dallin H. Oaks also stated, “For most of us the mortal journey is long, and we continue our course with the protection of guardian angels.” Even the Lord himself promised, “I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up” (D&C 84:88).

Guardian angels, then, are surely very real. They are messengers of comfort and peace, bearers of warnings, and protectors of faithful Saints. They are part of an innumerable host doing the will of a loving Father in Heaven who looks after each of us. Whether they are spirits unknown to us or spirits of our loved ones, guardian angels are indeed all around us to bear us up.

Angels Don't Have Wings

I thought this article from LDSliving.com gave some good information.  I especially loved the quote from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, "I believe we need to speak of and believe in and bear testimony of... angels more than we sometimes do."

Angels Don't Have Wings + 4 More Things We Know About Them

JAKE HEALEY

We sing about them in beloved Christmas hymns. We read about them in holy scripture. We even have one of them standing triumphantly atop our temples. As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we wholeheartedly believe in the existence of angels.

But . . . what are they, exactly?

Perhaps much of the mystery that surrounds angels comes from our reluctance to talk about them—and according to Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, this needs to change. “I believe we need to speak of and believe in and bear testimony of . . . angels more than we sometimes do,” he said. It was in that spirit that BYU professor Donald W. Parry wrote Angels: Agents of Light, Love, and Power. Dr. Parry’s book strives to clear up misconceptions about the role and purpose of angels through an exploration of ancient and modern scripture. 

The following five excerpts provide fascinating insight on the subject:

Angels do not have wings

The Prophet Joseph Smith taught, “An angel of God never has wings.” The widely held notion that angels have wings originated from several sources.

First, the scriptures set forth that seraphs (Hebrew, seraphim) have wings (see Isaiah 6:2). Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1:9-11) and John (Revelation 4:8) envisioned living creatures with wings; these wings are probably not literal but, rather, symbolic of angels’ abilities to move about. In fact, when the Prophet Joseph inquired about this subject, he received the answer that the wings are a “representation of power, to move, to act, etc.” (D&C 77:4).

Second, artists continue to perpetuate the idea that angels have wings. President George Q. Cannon explained: “The early artists, long centuries ago, are credited with the idea of painting angels with wings . . . From that time to the present this has been accepted as the proper form in which to present angels. It has become a firmly fixed tradition in the Christian world that angels must have wings.”

Angels who minister to this earth have belonged to it or may yet belong to it

Doctrine and Covenants 130:4-5 states: “In answer to the question—Is not the reckoning of God’s time, angel’s time, prophet’s time, and man’s time, according to the planet on which they reside? I answer, Yes. But there are no angels who minister to this earth but those who do belong or have belonged to it.” Accordingly, the well-known angels Michael, Gabriel, John the Baptist, Peter, James, John, Moroni, and many others are historical persons who have lived upon this earth. Other angels who have ministered on this earth may have done so before they were born in the flesh.

Editor’s Note: The usage of the term “this earth” is very interesting here, as it implies that other worlds’ angels minister to those worlds they belong to or may yet belong to.

Angels are our fellow servants in the work of the Lord

When the angel John the Baptist ordained Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, he spoke the words, “Upon you my fellow servants” (D&C 13:1). Similarly, the angel who instructed John the Revelator told him, “I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus” (Revelation 19:10) and later said, “I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets” (Revelation 22:9).

Angels are the offspring of God

Angels are the children of our Heavenly Father. President Joseph F. Smith, “When messengers are sent to minister to the inhabitants of this earth, they are not strangers, but from the ranks of our kindred, friends, and fellow-beings and fellow-servants.” And Elder Parley P. Pratt wrote that “Gods, angels and men are all of one species, one race, one great family, widely diffused among the planetary systems, as colonies, kingdoms, nations, etc.”

Angels operate among men, women, and children

Angels do not restrict their appearances or communications to a particular gender, age group, tribe, or nation; rather, angels operate among all humankind—men, women, and children—according to the Lord’s divine will (see LDS Bible Dictionary). Alma 32:23 states that God “imparteth his word by angels unto men, yea, not only men but women also. Now this is not all; little children do have words given unto them many times, which confound the wise and the learned.” Joseph Smith’s promise to members of the Relief Society—“If you live up to your privileges, the angels cannot be restrained from being your associates”—may also apply to men and children.

My Temple Journey

My journey has been a very long one and I will just cover the highlights and the things that I feel like I should share.
I was born and raised a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  I met my future husband when I was young and some interesting turn of events brought us together or should I say I think a certain angel made sure that we were married.  That angel is my husband's guardian angel.  I have had many experiences with him and he has brought to my memory a few times that he had to intervene to make sure that we ended up together.  Our marriage was no coincidence.
My husband is the most incredible person I know and I am so proud to be his wife.  He is not a member of the church but is very supportive of me and attends with me every Sunday.  We have been married for over a decade and almost every year as the year ends I start wondering if it is my time to go to the temple.  Over the years, I have had many Bishops and Stake Presidents tell me that it was not time and that I should wait for my husband and I was happy to wait.  As the years progressed, I kept myself busy doing baptisms and have a very special place in my heart for that ordinance.
The last few years my desire to go has grown more and more but every time I prayed about it I kept getting the same answer that it was not time.
A few months ago, the thought came to me again and I started thinking about it more and more.  I met with my Bishop and asked him to pray about it as well.  We made plans to talk about it a few weeks later.
One night I had a dream and in this dream my husband's guardian angel came to me.  I immediately knew who he was and recognized him.  In my dream, he asked me to go to the temple and be baptized for his wife.  The next morning I told my husband that I needed to go to the temple soon and he told me I should just go that day.  I called and made an appointment and got my stuff together and went.
Even though I had made an appointment, I got there as they were making a shift change so I waited for quite a while.  While I was waiting, one of the temple workers came and sat beside me and started telling me his story.  He told me that his wife was not a member and he struggled with going to the temple by himself but then he looked at me and said, "but if I would have waited.  I would still be waiting at 77."I started crying and told him my story and he told me not to wait.  I opened up to him about my dream and pretty soon the First Counselor in the temple was sitting by me too and asked me about my dream so I told him as well.  By the time we got in to do baptisms we were all a little emotional.  The baptism was beautiful and as I left the waters the First Counselor said to me she was here and she accepted.  Tears filled my eyes to have that validated by him.  I had felt her too.
They both came and said goodbye to me as I was leaving the temple and as I reached for the door the Spirit whispered to me, "Now it is time to move forward".
A few weeks later I was able to go through the temple and be surrounded by my family and loved ones on both sides of the veil.

If You Aren't then Nobody Will

Last Sunday, I was sitting in church.  I knew that I needed to bear my testimony and had all week but I didn't know what He wanted me to share.  As I took the sacrament, I heard the spirit whisper to me "If you aren't talking about it, nobody will" and I knew exactly what the spirit was talking about.  You see, I have been struggling to know what to share and what not to share about my angel experiences.  I am so blessed to have them so often and some of them are too sacred to share but I know I have been given them for more then one reason.  I know that they are for me but I also know that they are for you.  They are to be used as a lesson so you too can recognize the angels in your life.  They are to be used to strengthen my testimony and yours but it can be scary to share.  I feel very vulnerable and scared about other's perception of me.  I know I shouldn't but putting yourself out there is scary but time and time again the answer keeps coming that I need to so I will be bold and I will share.  I hope if anyone even reads this blog it will help you.  I hope you will pray about the things written on here for yourself.  I hope that you will feel your own angels near you and recognize why they are there and who sent them to you.