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"I will sing of the Lord's great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations."
Psalm 89:1
Fifteen years ago in 1995 I was lying in my hospital bed waiting to be taken to surgery after my second heart attack, when the third heart attack overcame me. Two doctors and a nurse rushed in (I was unconscious) and after cutting me in the groin, ran a pump up into my heart to keep it going. My aorta had shut down. I was then swiftly pushed into surgery, still in my hospital bed, pump and all.
After surgery my heart was too weak to supply my body with oxygen, so I was attached to a ventilator which kept me alive. Slipping in and out of consciousness, I was aware one day that my whole family surrounded me. As I was trusted at that point to not attempt to pull the tubes out of my throat, I made a circle with my hands, then a steeple. My daughter said, "I think she wants a circle of prayer." My husband, son and daughter and I joined hands and my son said a lovely and loving prayer.
Sometime after this I felt "energy" under my body. This "energy" lifted me up and the ten IVs dropped off. I felt untethered to the earth and the feeling of absolute peace filled me.
Looking around, I saw the "legendary" entrance to the tunnel. I went over to it, how I do not know. The interior was a pale purple and seemed to be a "living color", color with movement like a cloud. I looked down at the entrance and saw me, in my bed, floating. I then had an idiot conversation with myself.
"There I am!" "No, I can't be there, I am here!" "No, there I am floating at the entrance!" "No, I can't be there because I am here." At that point I looked down supposedly at my feet and discovered that I had no body.
Overcome with emotion, I said aloud, "Oh, I must look closely because when I get back, I must tell people about this!" At once, I was embraced and overwhelmed with pure love, love from God, and embraced in every part of my body with this love.
At once I was back in my hospital bed and just knew, beyond any doubt, that I would live.
Upon being discharged after nineteen days, my husband told me that the doctors had given him notice of a 48-hour period. During this period it was a toss-up if I would live or die.
God was faithful. He embraced me and assured me that He was in charge and that I would indeed live to "spread the Good News!" God and Heaven are real. Believe.
Great is His faithfulness
Running in Faith is a personal interpretation of scripture, written in faith, by members of Abiding Presence Lutheran Church to help readers take their Sunday faith into their weekday lives. Each Devotion represents the personal opinion of the author and does not necessarily represent Abiding Presence Lutheran Church. Permission is granted to link to this page and to use the Devotion for personal, non-commercial purposes only.
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