An Orthopedic Doctor's Near Death Experience - Dr Mary Neal (To Heaven a...

John 14:3 New International Version (NIV)
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

I'm currently reading 'Imagine Heaven, a book about incredible near-death experiences. In his book, he writes about the near-death research done by Dr. John Long. In his research, after factoring out the less credible stories, still revealed commonalities. One near-death experience featured in his book was the story of Dr. Mary Neal a board-certified orthopedic spine surgeon who drowned while kayaking on a South American river. She experienced life after death. She went to heaven and back, conversed with Jesus and experienced God's encompassing love. She was returned to Earth with some specific instructions for work she still needed to do. Her life has been one filled with the miracles and intervention of God. Her story gives reason to live by faith and is a story of hope.

For all of us who lost a loved one, we want to know what happened to our loved one on the night he/she died. We aren't able to see on the other side of the veil, but we cry out to God to reveal anything to give us hope that our loved one is in a better place. Most certainly, we want to know what happens to us when we take our final breath in our earthly bodies.

John Burk does a very good job picturing for the rest of us this future home which he describes as a fun place any of us want to be when our time on this planet ends. If we all have this vision of heaven, it will likely change the way you live the rest of your life. You will likely find ways of encouraging others and loving the unlovable and sharing your personal faith story about how Jesus gave you a purpose and a hope for living. I'm enclosing this link for Amazon where you can obtain this uplifting book about your future home- heaven. https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=JOhn+Burk+imagine+heaven

God promises an exhilarating future that awaits you in a place where there will be no more pain, no more suffering, a brand new body with all working parts and energy that you haven't experience since you were a child! Our God truly is an amazing God!

I was reminded by the recent Christopher Robin movie of the importance of our imaginations and our playful natures in helping us heal from life's losses.

Jacob’s Dream at Bethel

10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran. 11 When he reached a certain place,he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. 12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 There above it[a] stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.[b] 15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Genesis 28:10-15

Some say that we're too left brain for our own good. 

It seems our imaginations get shelved when we become adults.  We put away our imaginations and rely on the rational thought processes to help us with daily problems. 

Yet in other parts of the world, God speaks through our imaginations- the right brain. He made us with two hemispheres and why wouldn't he?  It is often when grief enters our lives that we learn quickly through the dreams He provides to each of us reminders of our loved ones as though those dreams remind us that their loved one is in a good place.

Shortly after our daughter died, we purchased this Meerkat ( named after Meerkat Manor) because it was the nickname he had for his sister whenever they watched the Animal Kingdom show at their grandparents. They would each make these meerkats sounds.  

When she died, he no longer had this outlet. My son had wanted to buy a small stuff Meerkat at the hospital store to give to his sister when she was recovering from surgery but never did. After she died, my wife found the same Meerkat at a store when she was shopping with our son and decided to purchase it for him.  Like Pooh was to Christopher Robin, Meerkat was to our son. Whenever we traveled he brought Meerkat along. Meerkat was a source of comfort for a grieving boy's heart because it helped him to always remember he had a sister.

Our Imaginations are a powerful instrument used by God to help us heal from our loss. 

Even Christopher Robin discovers that it is okay to hang onto his former friends from his youth- Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore because his friends helped restored his love for life, his wife, and his child. His friends helped him to remember that it is okay to take time off to play and have fun with his family.

Every one of us will encounter loss as we travel through life. Life Experiences will do that to us. When it does, remember God speaks through our imaginations in the dreams he gives to us, or the exquisite colorful night skies he reveals to us!

In the last 3 weeks my eyes have opened up to a new wave of homelessness in our city

‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers,[a] you did it to me.’ Matthew 25:40

Have we become such cold and heartless creatures that we are blinded by the suffering of so many in our world? Have we fallen into the trap that believes that homeless people are only trying to manipulate us? I know one person who made a comment that a person uses a cane is only doing so to get benefits.

In the last 3 weeks in different parts of the city, my eyes were opened to the homeless problem. In one affluent northwestern suburb sat a family of 4 kids as one parent took turns holding a sign that said, 'please help'. In this one situation, the dad was playing with his children on the blanket beneath a shade tree. Where they sat you could see Nordstrom Rack and across the street the AMC movie theaters.

In another part of the city, I saw another homeless family. Like the first one, this family was also disheveled. The 3 kids in this situation were all playing amongst themselves with their dad as mom held a sign, 'please help-we're homeless.' My heart broke.

In still another part of the city, I saw yet another family sitting under a shade tree. As their kids played together each of their parents took turns holding a sign, 'please help- we're homeless'.

I remember years ago, Mary Jo Copeland tried to get various suburbs to approve her plans to build a homeless shelter. One by one each of these cities voted her down when overwhelmingly people said, 'not in my city.' Fortunately, she was persistent until the City of Minneapolis gave approval to what is known as 'Mary Jo's Place'.https://sharingandcaringhands.org/marys-place. This is a mere drop in the bucket until the problem of sustainable and affordable housing is addressed.

Unfortunately, many suburban cities aren't addressing this problem. Many would rather utter 'not in my city' with hopes the problem would go away.

Not everyone is living the American dream. Not everyone is receiving generous inheritances from their parents or grandparents. We seem to have this false sense of belief that if you can be successful then why can't they? We forget to see the stories behind their suffering. Stories like when disability forces them out of a job or being so overcome by trauma that they have a hard time maintaining employment. We forget to listen to their story.

I'm reminded of these words from Jesus in Matthew 25:36-40:

36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers,[a] you did it to me.’

One of those cities that voted down Mary Jo's idea of building a homeless shelter later approved to allow an NFL team to relocate their training headquarters.http://www.startribune.com/mary-jo-copeland-selling-site-once-planned-for-orphanage/316060741/

The reality is that unless we address the problem of sustainable and affordable housing the problem of homelessness will only grow.