There are all sorts of books about angels around these days, but A Rustle of Angels does what many of them do not -- it examines modern-day angelic activity alongside Biblical reports of angelic events. Its focus remains steadfast on the Scriptures, not a new-age interpretation of modern-day "miracles." It even provides a set of guidelines that help you distinguish a true angelic visit from that of a minion of the devil -- Lucifer has his own share of fallen angels who are not above tricking someone into feeling or doing something that is wrong. Many of the encounters reported in these pages are open to interpretation -- there's no way to prove that these were not the products of luck, circumstance or blind chance; what cannot be disputed, however, is the change these events evoked in the lives of those reporting what they truly to believe to be encounters with God's angels.

While angels are primarily God's messengers, they have come to the aid of human beings in a number of ways -- and the authors organize the bulk of the book under the different roles angels have played. We most often think in terms of guardian angels (and the authors contend that every individual does indeed have a guardian angel), messenger angels and warrior angels, but angels can also play much more subtle roles in the lives of human beings. Many have found strength and encouragement from angels, and some have been blessed with a sense of peace at times in which they seemingly need no assistance from God. Even non-believers have encountered angels -- sometimes leading to their own conversion and sometimes scaring them away from harming someone else. The authors also deal with the presence of angels among the dying and/or their grieving loved ones.

From there, the authors address some of the common questions about angels -- what they look like, if they really sing, etc. -- and show why, on a Scriptural basis, some popular misconceptions are not true. Angels were created separately by God, the book explains, and no human being who dies can become an angel, nor can we follow certain steps in order to contact our own guardian angel. Angels appear in different forms, to those who need to see them, always at the behest of God alone. Most importantly, the authors make the point that everything angels do is done solely for the glory of God. Indeed, that is the main criterion for determining whether an angelic encounter is a true event.

Along with Billy Graham's book on angels, this is probably the second best book I have read on the subject. That is primarily because this book examines angels in Scriptural terms, unlike many recent books that contain all manner of modern speculations over these mysterious yet most glorious agents of God. A Rustle of Angels is an honest, enlightening, ultimately inspirational book that should really have a place on the shelves of anyone interested in the subject.

by Daniel Jolley
Rambles.NET
4 February 2006