“Are (angels) not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?”
Hebrews 1:14 (ESV)
Anthony John Burger (1961-2006) was an American gospel and classical pianist, best known for accompanying The Gaither Vocal Band. At the age of 44, Anthony died of a massive heart attack while performing aboard the MS Zuiderdam, a cruise ship chartered for a Gaither Gospel Cruise. He was accompanying Bill and Gloria Gaither when fans in the audience noticed he had ceased moving his hands—clenching them into fists over the keyboard.
At the age of eight months, Anthony was using a baby walker and fell into a heating duct on the floor of his house. He suffered third degree burns on his hands, face, and legs. As a result of the burns, his doctors told his parents he would most likely never have full use of his hands. Despite these disappointing odds, Anthony made a remarkable recovery and became a child prodigy on the piano! At the age of five years old, he was accepted into the Cadek Conservatory of Music, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Within a few years he was playing a classical piano repertoire.
Throughout his entire career, Anthony shared how God healed his hands and that playing the piano was his way of praising God. Even his death brought immense praise to God! Eyewitness accounts state that members of the audience saw a tall misty white being, resembling an angel, next to him with its right hand on Anthony’s shoulder at his passing.
Angels are spirits in the service of God—they exist to carry out His will. You may be familiar with the term guardian angel—a concept that is present throughout the Bible. A guardian angel is a type of angel that is assigned to protect, guide, and meet the needs of a particular group, nation, or son or daughter of God.
Anthony Burger’s story is remarkable and comforting. It is remarkable indeed that God gave him such an amazing blazing talent, but it is also profoundly comforting to know that an angel just might accompany me on my journey to Heaven, too. Praise God and may it be so for us all!