Seeing angels

“And Elisha prayed, ‘O Lord, open his eyes so he may see.’ Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” 2 Kin. 6:17
Elisha and his servant were staying in Dothan while the king of Aram was making military forays into the land of Israel. But God was telling Elisha where the king of Aram would attack next, and Elisha would inform the king of Israel so he could be prepared. Naturally the king of Aram decided to try and capture Elisha, so he sent a large army to Dothan. In the morning, Elisha’s servant looked out and saw that the Aramean army had surrounded the city and went to Elisha in despair. But then we have this event: Elisha prayed that God would open the servant’s eyes so that he could see the spiritual world. He saw the hills full of the angels of the army of God. The story goes on: Elisha prayed that God would blind the Arameans, then he led them to Samaria, where they were shown hospitality and returned to Aram.
I don’t recall having ever seen an angel. That’s not to say that I might not have; angels appear in human form, and many people have entertained angels without knowing it (Heb. 13:2). But I most certainly believe in their existence and their influence in the world around us. Satan has his agents of darkness at work, and God has His agents of light, who are “ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation” (Heb. 1:14).
See also 1 John 4:4 and Rom. 8:31 (which was discussed here). If only we were more aware of the spiritual world around us – particularly those who are on our side as believers. Then we would not despair.