By Kendal Huntsman
We all long for love and to be known intimately, whether it’s by family, friends, or in a romantic relationship. Well, did you know that your guardian angel’s sole purpose is you? God created an angel specifically for YOU. If the Lord is close to those who call upon Him, how much closer will He be if we ask our guardian angel for assistance?
For all of creation up until the moment of your conception, an angel has been waiting patiently for you. His or Her sole purpose is to get you home to heaven. God made a guardian angel for every person that would ever exist; God doesn’t make new ones, or reassign them. Your guardian angel was made by God specifically for you, and your angel’s purpose could not start to be completely fulfilled until the exact moment you were conceived inside your mother’s womb.
St. Thomas Aquinas teaches, that the angels, especially our guardian angels, “take part in all our good works” (Summa Theologica, I, 114, 3 ad 3). The Catechism of the Catholic Church also states that “God has given to each one of us a personal Guardian Angel, primarily, for our own sanctification” (CCC 350). In order to receive their help more efficaciously, we should develop an intimate relationship with our Guardian Angel by committing our lives to him through a special devotion. One way is to consecrate ourselves formally to our Guardian Angel. The purpose of the Consecration to the Guardian Angel is to bind oneself to one’s own holy Guardian Angel, so that his help can become much more efficacious in us and that we advance more rapidly on the way to God.
“From its beginning until death, human life is surrounded by [the angels’] watchful care and intercession.”
CCC 336
During my sophomore fall semester at Franciscan University in Steubenville Ohio, I attended a talk given by Dr. Mark Miravalle who is a leading Catholic theologian mariology and loves studying angels. I too have always been fascinated by them and how they play a crucial role in the universe and our daily lives. Miravalle explained that, “Angels can be as active in our lives as we allow them to.”
But how? How do we let angels into our lives? How can we on a daily basis create the habit of invoking our guardian angels?
There are 5 key ways:
1) Name
I encourage you to engage in a friendship with your guardian angel, and you can start by asking what his or her name is. Try asking for a name before you go to bed, and when you wake up the next morning, you just might receive a name. Scholars and theologians encourage that you do this consistently for three nights in a row at least to be absolutely sure. I know from personal experience that this really does work. Both my mom and I were able to receive the names of our angels in this way. You can share your guardian angel’s name with your family and friends if you so choose, or keep the name to yourself. Some wonder why we might give a human name to an angelic being, but it is simply so that we know what to call them when we need them. Your name is your identity. When a person gives you his or her name, it is an invitation to enter into a deeper relationship with that person. Initiate that invitation to a deeper relationship with your guardian angel by asking his or her name.
2) Adoration
For years it never even crossed my mind to ask my guardian angel for prayers other than before bed, but angels adore God by nature, by purpose and by function. When we invoke the angels to help us adore the Lord better, they are filled with joy because that is their natural state. Upon waking, with just a few simple words you can invite your guardian angel to have complete access to your mind so that they can guide your thoughts and positively influence your actions throughout your day. You can ask them for advice in any particular situation, but it is especially important that you ask for their aid during Mass and adoration. When we do this, we are elevating our souls to God and making every action a prayer. So, the next time you are in mass or adoration, try inviting them to teach you how to adore God better.
3) Contemplation
Our guardian angels can help us to deepen and strengthen our prayer life. In the past year, I have made it a habit when greeting people to say hello to their guardian angel as well and ask their guardian angel to pray for them. This is also incredibly helpful if you are speaking with someone who often gets on your nerves or if it is just a difficult conversation. Invite both of your guardian angels into the conversation. Greet their guardian angel, ask their guardian angel to pray for them, ask your guardian angel to pray for them, and most importantly pray for them yourself. I have made this a habit in my daily conversations with everyone, not just in difficult ones, and I have noticed a significant difference in my own mindset and attitude towards them. When we ask for our guardian angel’s help in conversations, we are able to see the person before us more clearly for who they are as a child of God.
4) Expiation
We can assist our guardian angel in offering our sufferings for something greater: our families, for the church, or for the world. However, we first must learn how to suffer well. Suffering well might seem like a strange concept, but it is necessary to understand if we wish to grow in a deeper relationship with the Lord. When we look at the lives of the saints, many of them suffered greatly. Saint Bernadette suffered from asthma and other ailments throughout her life. Saint Francis of Assisi & Padre Pio and others bore the wounds of our Lord and suffered great physical pain, and Mother Theresa experienced a spiritual dryness for more than forty years! These men and women were saints because they knew how to suffer well. Ask your guardian angel for help in your journey to learning how to suffer well.
5) Your Mission
Your mission is to get home to heaven and to bring others with you. Your guardian angel is your partner in that mission, so don’t forget to invite him or her into your journey.
#FUN FACT: Every time we are at Mass during the presentation of the offerings, your guardian angel brings a box of your petitions to the altar.
For years I let my box go up to the altar empty, but once I realized the power of our petitions with the intercession of our guardian angels, the saints, and of course Mother Mary, I began to re-evaluate what could be a spiritual representation of all my prayers to place on the altar. Then it hit me: my very own heart is the complete embodiment of who I am as a human and what needs the Lord the most! Now, every time I go to Mass, I imagine myself taking my heart out of my chest and handing it to my guardian angel for her to place at the altar. In offering Christ my heart, I am offering everything I am and everything I long to be. In giving Christ my heart and asking him to replace it with His, I can begin to fulfill my life’s mission to become more like Him.
If you forget everything else from this article, remember this prayer and make a habit of praying it daily! Your guardian angel is waiting for you; you simply have to invite him or her into your life.
Guardian Angel or _____________(Insert their name), help me to enter into a divine friendship of love with you. I consecrate myself to you, and I give you permission to have full effect on my consciousness and in particular my day to keep me focused on what is truly important. Help me to draw my heart closer to Jesus and make my life a radiance of Him so that I may ultimately come home and be reunited with Him in heaven, Amen.
“The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.”
Psalm 34:7
Born Dignified 