Thursday, March 28, 2013

when what we believe breaks down

"...But what we believe doesn't matter unless we know who we believe. And when what we believe breaks down, if we trust who we believe, then even we don't understand, or are uncertain about things,  we can trust the person that we believe." 

I used to be a doubter. I went through season of intense doubt, and more than once seriously considered walking away from Christianity. But my experience over the last 18 months of connecting with Jesus, and helping others connect with Jesus has changed that part of me. I haven't doubted since. The video below is from Jessie Handy, a trainer in the Immanuel Approach to Healing and to Life. I was in the class when she gave this devotional, and I was writing feverishly, trying to capture what she said. This morning I found the video. It reflects exactly what I have experienced.



I Know Whom I Have Believed from Alive and Well, Inc on Vimeo.

Monday, March 11, 2013

Signs that wonderful things are afoot

This is a link to a fascinating Fresh Air interview by Terri Gross with Sam Parnia, a scientist studying resuscitated cardiac arrest patients.

Regardless of culture or religion, people around the world are reporting stories of the time between their technical death and their resuscitation that share the following themes:

They describe watching things in the hospital and recall conversations in the hospital room that happened while they were dead.
They feel incredibly peaceful.
They no longer fear death.
They see a warm light.
They feel that a warm, welcoming,  loving, compassionate being leading them through their experience.
They see a review of their lives, form early childhood to their death.
They experience the pain they have given others during their lives. They judge themselves (within the presence of the warm compassionate being I presume) and come back committed to living better.
They felt a sensation of detaching from their body, looking down at their hospital room, and seeing and hearing conversations that occurred in other rooms.

(By the way, these experiences are universal regardless of culture or religion).

The "warm, welcoming, loving, compassionate being" sounds quite congruous with the Jesus that I and many of my friends have encountered using the Immanuel Approach to prayer. Dr. Parnia's conclusion is that we humans no longer need to fear death. The story is all the more interesting because in the end Dr. Parnia explains that he holds no religious views.

Give it a listen, and let's talk about it.


Thursday, March 7, 2013

March 6, 2013, in the backyard

My favorite part is Eli's stockpile of snowballs toward the end. What's yours?