{"id":1975,"date":"2011-10-26T01:00:18","date_gmt":"2011-10-26T05:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/simplelife\/?p=1975"},"modified":"2011-10-25T21:29:20","modified_gmt":"2011-10-26T01:29:20","slug":"daves-trip-to-heaven","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/simplelife\/2011\/10\/daves-trip-to-heaven.html","title":{"rendered":"Dave’s trip to heaven"},"content":{"rendered":"
This is a description of a good friend’s adventure in December 2010. \u00a0Dave is a quiet man who is not prone to exaggeration, extremes or drama. \u00a0<\/em><\/div>\n
\n
\"\"<\/a>
Dave<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Even though it’s been almost a year, each time he tells his experience, he cries. \u00a0Usually, people who hear the dream cry. \u00a0In his simple telling, there is \u00a0powerful evidence of God’s mercy and grace.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
I had chest pains and was so dizzy I could not lift my head. My wife called\u00a0an ambulance and I was taken to our local hospital in Melbourne, Florida.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
\"\"<\/a>Around 2AM the next morning my journey to heaven began. \u00a0I went through a\u00a0<\/span>tunnel filled with \u00a0gorgeous flowers. The colors and smell were nothing I had ever\u00a0seen or smelled. \u00a0I went through light on the other side.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
I saw a white fence that went on for as far as I could see; and I saw an a<\/span>ngel who was just a little bigger than I am. \u00a0She had \u00a0wings and she was playing a harp. \u00a0 She played\u00a0the harp during my entire visit to heaven.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
On the other side of the fence I could see a road made of gold and Jesus\u00a0<\/span>standing at the gate. The road was firm and solid but so clear that I could see the clouds\u00a0underneath it.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
When I saw Jesus, I thought, Wow! It is really him. \u00a0He looks exactly like his\u00a0<\/em><\/span>pictures, except his eyes are a bright sky-blue.<\/em> \u00a0He wore a white robe with\u00a0gold fringe.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
Next, I saw four of my family members. They were dressed in white. \u00a0I saw my\u00a0<\/span>mother, step-father (who raised me), grandmother (my mother’s mother) and my Uncle Mike. (My mother raised him starting at ten years old when my\u00a0grandmother died of a heart attack. \u00a0He was like my brother.) \u00a0They all looked between 21 and 34\u00a0<\/span>years of age.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
I talked with my mother first. I asked her if she was still in pain.\u00a0<\/span>She had died of cancer. She said, “No.” She asked me how my brothers and\u00a0sister are doing.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
I talked to my step-dad and brought up that I was disappointed that he never\u00a0<\/span>got around to legally adopting me. \u00a0That had been his plan, but inadequate\u00a0funding prevented him from being able to carry out the plan. He was the\u00a0Chief of Police of Stow, Ohio. \u00a0He died of a heart attack when I was 15<\/span>\u00a0years old. \u00a0He said that he was also very sorry that he was unable to\u00a0get that done for me.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
Next I talked with my Uncle Mike. \u00a0He also died of a heart attack. \u00a0He\u00a0<\/span>suffered with heart pain before his death and refused to seek help. \u00a0I asked\u00a0him why he didn’t go to the doctor and he said that he didn’t want anyone to\u00a0cut him open. I told him that I had open heart surgery and that it isn’t\u00a0that bad and that he could be alive today if he had sought help. He again\u00a0stated that he didn’t want anyone to cut him open and he was happy in\u00a0<\/span>heaven.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
\"\"<\/a>The last family member I talked to was my grandmother. \u00a0I thanked her for\u00a0<\/span>helping me with my speech when I was in elementary school. \u00a0At that time, I had a speech\u00a0impediment. \u00a0She worked with me on some of the letters that gave me trouble. \u00a0She told me\u00a0that was a great time for her being with me. Grandmother was shocked that I remembered this. \u00a0My\u00a0grandmother looked younger than I ever remember seeing her.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
After I talked with each one of my family present, Jesus talked to me. He\u00a0<\/span>said I could enter the gate if I wanted. However, he said my job on earth\u00a0was not complete and he wanted me to return. \u00a0“But,” Jesus said to me, “it is your choice.” \u00a0He would\u00a0let me enter the gate if I wanted. \u00a0He told me I had a wonderful family.\u00a0I told Jesus I would return to earth. \u00a0Jesus said, “I’m glad you made this\u00a0<\/span>choice.”<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
When I returned, I did not go through the tunnel. I could see my body\u00a0<\/span>sitting up in my hospital bed. \u00a0I remember thinking, “How am I sitting up?\u00a0I wasn’t able to sit up earlier.” \u00a0You see, I was so dizzy when I came to\u00a0the hospital, I could not lift my head. I remember floating through the air\u00a0and returning into my body.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
I wanted to call my best friend, Linda, and my wife, Pam, to tell them. I\u00a0<\/span>looked at the clock and it was 3:00AM. Jesus spoke to my heart and said, “You can wait until\u00a0morning to tell the story. You will remember it.”<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
I waited until morning and called my wife and asked her and my friend to\u00a0<\/span>come to the hospital as I just returned from heaven and wanted to tell them\u00a0my story.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
My friend Linda said she believed I died because I expelled my body fluids and the nurse\u00a0<\/span>had to clean me up. My trip seemed to take about 15 to 20 minutes. \u00a0Yet, I was connected to heart monitors. \u00a0I was\u00a0never pronounced dead, nor did any of the heart monitors show any signs of\u00a0death. \u00a0I guess it is true that a day is like a thousand years and vice versa to\u00a0God. \u00a0He can do all this work in the twinkle of an eye.<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is a description of a good friend’s adventure in December 2010. \u00a0Dave is a quiet man who is not prone to exaggeration, extremes or drama. \u00a0 Even though it’s been almost a year, each time he tells his experience, he cries. \u00a0Usually, people who hear the dream cry. \u00a0In his simple telling, there is…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":387,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,20,40,312,186,49,4,41,313],"tags":[21,688,14,262,224,715,701,6,700,314],"class_list":["post-1975","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-christianity","category-church","category-faith","category-heaven-2","category-hope","category-inspiration","category-simple-truths","category-spirituality","category-visit-in-heaven","tag-christian","tag-christianity","tag-death-and-dying","tag-gods-grace","tag-heaven","tag-hope","tag-inspiration","tag-simple-scriptural-truths","tag-spirituality","tag-visit-to-heaven"],"yoast_head":"\nDave's trip to heaven - A Simple Life, a Childlike Faith<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/simplelife\/2011\/10\/daves-trip-to-heaven.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dave's trip to heaven - A Simple Life, a Childlike Faith\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This is a description of a good friend’s adventure in December 2010. \u00a0Dave is a quiet man who is not prone to exaggeration, extremes or drama. \u00a0 Even though it’s been almost a year, each time he tells his experience, he cries. \u00a0Usually, people who hear the dream cry. \u00a0In his simple telling, there is…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/simplelife\/2011\/10\/daves-trip-to-heaven.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"A Simple Life, a Childlike Faith\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-10-26T05:00:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2011-10-26T01:29:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/simplelife\/files\/2011\/10\/Dave-heaven-150x150.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Linda G. 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