Is heaven for real? As a follower of God I believe the answer is yes … but during my grandfather’s passing I discovered that I was right.
I’m eager to see the movie Is Heaven for Real, releasing April 16th. If you haven’t seen it here is the official trailer.
Yet I’m going to the movie knowing I already believe in heaven. I don’t have to be convinced. Here is my story …
How I know heaven is for real …
Years ago I met a hospice nurse named Penny. Her job was making the last days of terminally ill patients as comfortable as possible.
“That must be so hard,” I told her once. “So sad.”
“Actually, I’ve seen some very amazing things. I think of myself as a delivery nurse, helping people transition into eternity.”
I didn’t really understand what Penny meant until my Grandpa Fred came to live with our family during the last months of his life. I enjoyed the time with him, but something happen during his last conscience day that I’ll never forget.
Here’s an excerpt from my mommy memoir Blue Like Play Dough talking about that experience:
Four months after coming to live with us, my grandfather was bedridden. My grandmother and I would spend time in his room reading Scripture verses and praying with him. Then one day as the kids and I were getting ready to start the school day, my grandma called, “Tricia, I need you!”
Terrified, I raced down the stairs and into my grandparents’ bedroom. A typically quiet man, my grandpa’s hands were lifted. He was weeping like a baby.“Oh dear Jesus. Oh dear Jesus. I love you, dear Lord Jesus!” The words spilled from his lips.
At first I thought he was in pain or that he was breaking down because of his lack of strength. My grandma’s hands were on his legs. She was praying with him. I joined her. Tears streamed down my grandfather’s face. I handed him a tissue.
He held it over his eyes, but the tears didn’t stop. “I love you, dear Jesus. Thank you, dear Jesus.”Five minutes, ten minutes passed. The prayers were the same.
Finally, he lifted the tissue away. “See those trees out the window?” He pointed outside. “They turned into a cross, and I saw Jesus reaching his hands out to me.”
The tears returned. Tears of joy. Goose bumps prickled my skin, and I was sure heaven was touching down in the room. I was almost afraid to look up, so sure was I that I would see heaven’s gates.
“I haven’t seen anything like that ever,” my grandpa said. “It’s a miracle.”
I agreed. “A miracle and a gift,” I whispered.
A little while later as my grandpa slept, I asked my grandma exactly what happened.
“Grandpa was just sitting there, looking out the window. Then he started pointing. ‘Look at that, Grandma,’ he said. ‘If I were an artist, I would love to paint that. Look at those white doves. Look at that lion. Oh, I’d love to paint that lion.’”
Tears ran down my grandma’s cheeks as she related the story to me. “And then he just started praising God, crying, and lifting his hands. That must be when he saw Jesus.” She smiled. “And that’s when I called for you.”
My heart was bursting with love for God and with thanksgiving for heaven. I didn’t want to leave the bedroom, so certain was I that it had become holy ground.
The next day my grandfather went into a coma, and while I should have been terribly sad, my heart filled with peace. Every time I walked into the room, it seemed brighter and filled with the brush of angel wings, as if heaven had touched it.
Grandpa lasted five more days. During his last conscious moment he blew me a kiss. I knew what he was saying, “See you later, sweetheart.”
And I trust I will. I know I’ll meet him on the other side.
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I had a very similar experience when my grandfather was on his deathbed in 1998. Struggling with congestive heart failure, he had been “out of it” for about a day or so. He woke up for a few brief moments, and the one thing I will remember for the rest of my life is when he said, “This is so beautiful. I can’t wait to tell you all about it.”
Oh, Kathryn! That brought tears to my eyes. Thank you!
My father passed away in 2005 of extensive bone cancer. My mother was in the other room as he started to moan and pray. “Oh Jesus, take away my pain!” Then he went quiet. My mother went into the room to see if he had gone to sleep and found him half in his bed. His left leg was out of bed and his hand was reaching up to heaven. He was gone. It was as though, God reached down, took his hand and led him to heaven.
Wow, that is amazing. Thank you for sharing!!
My father died in 2006 from pancreatic cancer. It had been a dreary fall day with non-stop rain the whole morning before he passed. He had been in a coma for the past few hours and our family was surrounding his bed. Right when he took his last breath, the sun shone through the clouds and a gust of wind swirled the leaves outside the window of his hospice room. Almost instantly after that, the rain returned and the sun was behind the clouds again. We all just sort of looked at each other amazed. We felt like Jesus had sent his angels to escort my father home.
I rode in the ambulance the day my friend in college collapsed at a race. Normally quite calm and introverted, she kept crying out over the noise of the sirens-“Jesus, Jesus, Jesus” and when we arrived at the hospital and she was treated and given fluids etc. I went in to see her. We all thought she was dying and she said to me,”I was dying. I remember leaving my body and there was bright light and I could see and feel Jesus and it was the most wonderful feeling in the world. Then, as soon as they gave me fluids I felt myself return to my body, and I was SO disappointed.” She explained how far better it was to be with Jesus. I will NEVER forget that!
The book was good, think the movie will be too. I also want to see “God is Not Dead.” I heard only good things about it.