Nick Bunick, whose work is described in the book The Messengers by Julia Ingram and G. W. Hardin, was awakened one night and given a mystical message. As he wrote it down, he noted the time he was awakened: 4:44 a.m. As this true story unfolds, more and more people find themselves being awakened at 4:44 for various reasons.

On Nick Bunick's former website there is a page on which visitors may record their own 444 experiences. There are hundreds of stories of this type: The three hands of a standard clock stuck on 4, a thing normally impossible. Numbers on a license plate seen on a passing car. Receiving change from a clerk in the amount of $4.44.

How do spiritual beings make themselves known to humans? It is important that we learn their language, that we understand their desire to remain in touch daily so that we can avail ourselves of their help.

In II Kings 6, Elisha finds himself besieged in the town of Dothan by the troops of the king of Syria. His servant sees the enemy troops and despairs. But Elisha prays that God would open his servant's eyes, and his prayer is answered. The servant looks up and sees that the hillside is covered with horses and chariots of fire, the army of God.

We are also surrounded by spiritual forces. We need to have our eyes opened to the myriad signs around us which tell of the constant attention of our angels. When my daughter was away from her fiance for a year at school, they had a signal. Something memorable had happened in their relationship at 10:38. So every several days, one of them would dial the other at 10:38 and let the phone ring once. That simple sign let them know that the other person was thinking of them.

Subjective? Absolutely. But that particular behavior was a form of communication for them. Is Nick Bunick's 4:44 subjective? Again, yes. But if we choose to see it as significant, it becomes a channel through which the angels can let us know of their presence.

I read the first two chapters of Nick's book one night before I went to bed. That night I woke up, looked at the bedside clock, and was astonished to see that it was 4:44. Half a dozen people I know who have read the book have had the same experience. We need to keep our eyes open for these and other angelic taps on the shoulder.

Each person has his or her own channel to the spirit world. It may be a number or a sound or a smell, or something altogether different. Why not try to determine what yours is, and then expect communications through that channel? It never ceases to thrill us when, at an unexpected moment, our angel checks in through some simple sign, just to say "You're on the right track," or "Don't be afraid," or "I love you."