Heaven Has Horses

The night was not just snowy, but a blizzard. Jenny, a very old woman, was driving on a curvy mountain road and slid off down a steep ravine. She was shaken but unhurt, saved by her seatbelt and the six feet of snow that cushioned her landing at the bottom. Even though the car had settled mostly level and upright, she knew she was in big trouble. She’d never gotten a cellphone—her rotary-dial worked just fine—and she hadn’t told anyone where she was going. 

Jenny figured she’d be warm enough for awhile, but only awhile since the blizzard was intensifying and the temperature plummeting. You might think that this very old woman would be scared silly, panicked even. But no, she had some hope that she’d be discovered before it was too late, but she also knew that her tire tracks would soon disappear and she and her vehicle would be enveloped in drifting snow out of sight from the road above.

In spite of this reality, she was wonderfully calm. As a believer in Jesus, she was ready to go. She’d seen and done everything she wanted to do in her many years on earth. Best of all she had a wonderful family—children, grandchildren, great grandchildren. And she’d enjoyed robust health and was spunky to this very day. That was her only concern now—how they'd feel—especially if she wasn’t found until spring.

Those thoughts faded away as she started to feel the pitiless cold seeping in. After a couple of hours the chill that had become unbearable began to morph into the feeling of a warm fuzzy blanket being wrapped around her. She felt so cozy and warm that she never wanted the lovely sensation to end.

Suddenly, an extremely handsome young man was opening the car door and asked if he could get in and sit with her a minute. Of course she said yes. Without knowing how she knew, she just knew who he was—her guardian angel. He said, “My name is Gabe and I’m here to take you somewhere very special. You know what I mean, right?”

He had beautiful longish silver hair, a dazzling smile, a deep dimple in one cheek, and very large wings that he somehow managed to neatly fold around himself in the passenger seat of her ‘98 Ford Bronco. 

“I love this Bronco,” he said, looking around the interior and tapping the evergreen-tree air freshener on the rear view mirror to make it spin. “And your very first car was a Ford Mustang. Broncos, mustangs—you've always loved horsey things.”

“Oh yes!” she agreed.

He continued. “Remember when Cheyenne slipped on the ice on a hill and rolled over you, and you never felt a thing and were completely unhurt?”

“Oh my, how could I ever forget that? I knew something supernatural had just happened. Wait, was that . . . ?“

His hazel eyes twinkled. “Yup, yours truly. Someone had to do the heavy lifting.”

Cheyenne, her beautiful and spirited Appaloosa mare. She’d been Jenny’s constant companion as a child and young adult. But then one day Cheyenne died, as horses always do. She’d wept and grieved so long that she was afraid her broken heart would never heal. And it never had, completely.

After an hour or more of delightful chit-chat and reminiscing, which seemed like mere seconds, Gabe took her hand— “If you’re ready . . . “

“But, wait, you’ve always been there to get me out of sticky situations in the past, why not this one?” she asked.

“Well,” he said matter-of-factly, “Remember how you’ve always told your friends and family that you wanted to go out with a bang—as long as it’s quick and painless— rather than die of old age in a nursing home? Something really over the top like being eaten by a cougar while hiking in Utah? By the way, the good Lord sent me to save you from that one too—you were still young and would’ve missed out on the wonderful family He’s blessed you with.

At this point in time, this appears to be your perfect scenario—buried in a snowdrift down a ravine during a Colorado blizzard—at night. Unless you’d prefer to wait for something even more dramatic?” he teased.

“Oh, well, when you put it that way it does sound pretty perfect. Better than something ugly and bloody. But my family . . . they’ll be so upset.”

“Don’t worry about your family. You’ll be found soon and we’ll leave them a little something so they’ll know you weren’t alone.”

“Like what?” she asked. “A handwritten note saying ‘Gone with Gabe?’”

He slapped his knee and laughed. “You’re funny!”

Jenny laughed too, then said, “Before we go, and if there’s time, do you mind if I ask you just a couple questions?”

“We have as much time as you need. Fire away.”

“Ok, what’s the best and worst things about being an angel?”

“Such great questions. The best part of being an angel is the awesome honor and privilege of being sent out by God to serve and protect those who are heirs of salvation.”

“You mean like the incidents with the cougar, and Cheyenne rolling over me, and a thousand other things?” she asked.

“Exactly. And it’s been such a pleasure to be there for you in your adventures—especially the cougar one.”

“Oh? There were tracks near my tent but I never even saw a cougar while hiking in Utah, or realized that I was in any real danger. But I was, huh?”

He rolled his eyes. “You have No idea! Want to hear how close—-”

Jenny squeezed her eyes shut and held up a hand.

“ —-you came to—-“

“NO. Thank you. Ok, and the worst thing about being an angel?”

“What grieves me and my comrades the most is how so many people worship us rather than worshipping God. They don’t understand that we are created beings just like they are, and not to be worshipped or idolized. Yes, we’re big and strong and beautiful in appearance, but we are merely servants. Once you see Almighty God, the Creator of heaven and earth and everything in them, you’ll see how small and unimpressive we really are.”

Jenny sat silent, trying to imagine Gabe ever being small and unimpressive.

“Sooo . . . anymore questions? We’re good on time,” he teased.

“No more questions, let’s do this!” she said decisively.

“Like in ‘let’s roll?’” he laughed. “I was there for Todd, too, but that’s a whole other story for another day.”

He gently swooped her out of the car, right through the rooftop where he paused only a moment to unfurl his wings from the cramped Bronco. Then they were off, speeding past stars and galaxies. The next thing she knew she was hugging Jesus, and Jesus was hugging her. He showed her all around heaven where she joyously embraced her parents, grandparents and friends. Then He said, “I’ve been waiting for this moment to give you something special that’s been kept for you for a very long time. Trust Me, you’re going to love it.” She’d trusted Him all her life, and she knew this was going to be good.

First she heard the sound of thundering hooves from a great distance away, then growing closer, then coming to a sliding halt in front of her. Cheyenne! Her beautiful and spirited Appaloosa mare.

“Thank You, God! Thanks an awful lot!” she exclaimed.

—-

Three days later, Jenny was discovered tightly strapped in the drivers seat of her ‘98 Ford Bronco, with a smile on her face. In the passenger seat lay a single white feather.

THE END