Sulynne, my wife of 45 years, experienced her second heart attack on January 18, 2017–about 11 years following her first one. We were fortunate that I was home at the time; otherwise, she might have been a goner.
After the EMTs placed her in an ambulance and assessed her condition, one asked about her spiritual background and encouraged her to pray en route to the hospital. Somewhere along the way she flat-lined, which required being zapped by high-voltage paddles to restart her heart. During this time-frame an amazing thing occurred. She had an out-of-body experience.
Sulynne made it down a dark corridor to what others have called the death veil, a translucent curtain that she could see though hazily. People were on the other side, and she could see the outline of her brother, Bob, who had died years ago from a heart attack. It was quite noisy. She could not make out the words or sounds, but the place conveyed a sense of happiness. Behind the people she could see a bright light–brighter than the sun–but she couldn’t make out what it was. Interestingly, time did not exist, and she has no idea of how long she was in this place.
She felt at peace during this experience. She heard a faint voice in the distance calling her name, then a second time louder, and finally a third time very loudly. She felt no inclination to come back and wished that she had not been disturbed. She awakened when her heart started beating again. Immediately she actually chastised the EMT for bringing her back, as she had felt so close and wanting to pass through the veil to the other side. He responded, “not on my watch” and “God has more for you to do!”
People reading this story about her experience will have various reactions. Skeptics, including agnostics and atheists, may rationalize it was some naturally occurring psychological phenomenon caused by various chemicals within the brain being primed by electric impulses controlling the thought processes and body organs. Some religious folks will point out Bible verses about dying only once and claim nothing really happened, simply because her experience is inconsistent with their understanding of the Scriptures.
Others will be inspired by the story. Sulynne obviously didn’t die. However, she had a near-death experience. One should not dismiss it out-of-hand. She has described that it was just as real as seeing and talking with me face-to-face. I don’t know who deserves the credit for this quotation as it has been attributed to several people, but it applies to all of us: “You don’t have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body.”
On reflection Sulynne is happy the heart attack occurred to cause this near-death experience. It has firmly clarified her eternal destiny. What a great assurance! She doesn’t fear death and is actually looking forward to the return trip and remaining in the heavenly realm.
Before this event she was a little shy and tentative about sharing a personal testimony about Jesus Christ. She’s not this way any more! She approaches people–even strangers–and uses her near-death experience as a segue to presenting the message of God’s grace. Just know this: all of us have an eternal destiny. Be prepared.