LISTENING TO OUR BETTER ANGELS

I was driving my daughter home from college for the weekend on a Fall Friday afternoon. The air was warm, the sun was shining, the sky was clear, and God’s paintbrush had just begun to color the mountains of my home. Spectacular reds, yellows, and oranges glowed from the trees and kept a smile glowing on my own face as we drove up the narrow mountain road.

As I rounded a curve I saw an old gentleman who I knew didn’t own a car walking the way we were going. I was happy then to give him a lift since it was on our way home. Two days later I was driving up the same road on a Sunday afternoon after taking my daughter back to college. A cold rain was falling from an overcast sky and the fallen leaves on the road were slick and caused me to drive extra slow. As I neared the top of the mountain road I noticed the same old gentleman only this time headed back down the mountain. He smiled and waved as we drove by and at that very moment I heard one of my better angels whispering in my ear. I listened to the gentle voice telling my heart what to do, turned my car around, and gave that kind, old man a ride back down the road. I shook his hand, accepted his thanks, and headed home.

The trip cost me 20 minutes of my time and maybe half a gallon of gas. The peace that filled my heart, though, was worth all the money in the world. I drove home singing along with the radio, wrapped in a blanket of love and joy, and surrounded by all of my better angels.

We all should listen to our better angels. We all should pay heed to those quiet voices we hear in our hearts, souls, and minds. They are a guide for good and the guidance of God. They help us to help others and ourselves. They fill us with the peace of knowing that we are living as God’s Children in this world. How do we recognize these angels? They are always the voices of love and they always lead us to joy. Listen closely then. Heaven may be speaking to your heart.

…..Joseph J. Mazzella (joemazzella@frontier.com) by way of “Christian Voices” (www.ChristianVoicesWorldwide.net)