PRAY: What Gives Me Peace

My awesome roomie gave me this book to read before I went on my cruise. Have you guys heard about it? It's called "Heaven is for Real" by Todd Burpo. It is an incredible story and it goes kinda like this...


"Heaven Is for Real is the true story of the four-year old son of a small town Nebraska pastor who during emergency surgery slips from consciousness and enters heaven. He survives and begins talking about being able to look down and see the doctor operating and his dad praying in the waiting room. The family didn't know what to believe but soon the evidence was clear. Colton said he met his miscarried sister, whom no one had told him about, and his great grandfather who died 30 years before Colton was born, then shared impossible-to-know details about each. He describes the horse that only Jesus could ride, about how "reaaally big" God and his chair are, and how the Holy Spirit "shoots down power" from heaven to help us. Told by the father, but often in Colton's own words, the disarmingly simple message is heaven is a real place, Jesus really loves children, and be ready, there is a coming last battle."


You really need to read the book to get the full impact of this little boys journey. I consider myself a strong Christian, but sometimes have uncertainty about the definity of Heaven, Hell, and other Biblical paradoxes. Sometimes, I feel like they are metaphors. Colton's experience really makes me question that. 


See that amazing and stunning portrait of Jesus Christ, it was painted by an eight year old little girl (HUH?) named Akiane, who you can read about here. Now, I can't remember if she also went to Heaven herself, or if this was a divine vision she had of Him. None the less, when Colton was shown this painting, He said this was the Jesus he saw. None of the other drawings of Jesus his parents had shown him were "the one." But, this little girls painting was. I can't stop staring at it. Could this really be what my Savior looks like? I want to frame it and hang it on my wall. The face I someday hope to see. WOW.


Now, what really got to me was Colton's encounter with his sister. No, not the earthly one he interacted with on a daily basis. His mother had a miscarriage a year before Colton was born. He was never told of this. NEVER. After the visit to Heaven, he proclaimed his joy to his family about meeting his sister, playing with her, and about how much this little girl loved her mommy and daddy and how much she couldn't wait to see them. When I was reading all about this encounter, I was secretly crying my eyes out in the backseat of my friends car on the way home from leaving Tampa. It was so comforting and so emotional. Colton emphasized  how much Jesus loved the children and made it a point to tell his pastor father so. When I thought about it, one of my favorite verses pertains to this.

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." - Matthew 19:14

It gave me immense peace to read this. I believe his mom's miscarriage occurred in the first trimester also. Regardless, it made me have full faith and confidence my little angel is up in Heaven with Jesus and one day, I will be able to meet him or her and finally hold them in my arms.