Heaven Is for Real: A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back by Todd Burpo, Sonja Burpo, Lynn Vincent, Colton Burpo
Tags: Religión, General, Christian Theology, Inspirational, Christianity, Parapsychology, Body; Mind & Spirit, Christian Life, Religious aspects, heaven, Near-Death Experiences - Religious Aspects - Christianity, Near-Death Experience, Near-Death Experiences, Heaven - Christianity, Burpo; Colton, Eschatology
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knees. Well, pretend like youre in Gods throne. Jesus sat right there, he said, pointing to my right side.
The Hebrews passage flashed into my mind: Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.4
Wow. Here was a rare case where I had tested Coltons memories against what the Bible says, and he passed without batting an eye. But now I had another question, one I didnt know the answer to, at least not an answer from the Bible.
Well, who sits on the other side of Gods throne? I said.
Oh, thats easy, Dad. Thats where the angel Gabriel is. Hes really nice.
Gabriel. That makes sense. I remembered the story of John the Baptist and the moment when Gabriel arrived to deliver the news of John the Baptists coming birth.
But the angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. . . .
Zechariah asked the angel, How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.
The angel answered, I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.5
I stand in the presence of God, Gabriel told Zechariah. And now, more than two thousand years later, my little boy was telling me the same thing.
So Id had my glimpse into Gods throne room, but Coltons descriptions had me wondering: if God the Father was seated on his throne with Jesus on his right and Gabriel on his left, where was Colton?
Colton had already crawled underneath his blanket, his blond head nestled against a Spider-Man pillowcase. Where did you sit, Colton? I asked.
They brought in a little chair for me, he said, smiling. I sat by God the Holy Spirit. Did you know that God is three persons, Dad?
Yeah, I think I know that one, I said and smiled.
I was sitting by God the Holy Spirit because I was praying for you. You needed the Holy Spirit, so I prayed for you.
This took my breath away. Colton saying that he was praying for me in heaven reminded me of the letter to the Hebrews, where the writer says: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses . . . let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.6
What does God look like? I said. God the Holy Spirit?
Heaven is for real
Page: 36
Just as I was trying to picture that, Colton shifted course again. You know, thats where I met Pop.
You met Pop sitting by the Holy Spirit?
Colton nodded vigorously, smiling at what seemed a pleasant memory. Yep. Pop came up to me and said, Is Todd your dad? And I said yes. And Pop said, Hes my grandson.
How many times, when I presided over a funeral, had mourners delivered the usual well-meaning platitudes: Well, shes in a better place, or We know hes looking down on us, smiling, or Youll see him again. Of course, I believed those things in theory, but to be honest, I couldnt picture them. Now, with what Colton had said about Pop and about his sister, I began to think about heaven in a different way. Not just a place with jeweled gates, shining rivers, and streets of gold, but a realm of joy and fellowship, both for those who are with us in eternity and those still on earth, whose arrival we eagerly anticipated. A place where I would one day walk and talk with my grandfather who had meant so much to me, and with the daughter I had never met.
With all my heart, I wanted to believe. At that moment, the details of our conversations began to pile up in my mind like a stack of Polaroidspictures of heaven that seemed uncannily accurate from the descriptions we all have available to us in the Bibleall of us who can read, that is. But these details were obscure to most adults, much less a kid
The Hebrews passage flashed into my mind: Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.4
Wow. Here was a rare case where I had tested Coltons memories against what the Bible says, and he passed without batting an eye. But now I had another question, one I didnt know the answer to, at least not an answer from the Bible.
Well, who sits on the other side of Gods throne? I said.
Oh, thats easy, Dad. Thats where the angel Gabriel is. Hes really nice.
Gabriel. That makes sense. I remembered the story of John the Baptist and the moment when Gabriel arrived to deliver the news of John the Baptists coming birth.
But the angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. . . .
Zechariah asked the angel, How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.
The angel answered, I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.5
I stand in the presence of God, Gabriel told Zechariah. And now, more than two thousand years later, my little boy was telling me the same thing.
So Id had my glimpse into Gods throne room, but Coltons descriptions had me wondering: if God the Father was seated on his throne with Jesus on his right and Gabriel on his left, where was Colton?
Colton had already crawled underneath his blanket, his blond head nestled against a Spider-Man pillowcase. Where did you sit, Colton? I asked.
They brought in a little chair for me, he said, smiling. I sat by God the Holy Spirit. Did you know that God is three persons, Dad?
Yeah, I think I know that one, I said and smiled.
I was sitting by God the Holy Spirit because I was praying for you. You needed the Holy Spirit, so I prayed for you.
This took my breath away. Colton saying that he was praying for me in heaven reminded me of the letter to the Hebrews, where the writer says: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses . . . let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.6
What does God look like? I said. God the Holy Spirit?
Heaven is for real
Page: 36
Just as I was trying to picture that, Colton shifted course again. You know, thats where I met Pop.
You met Pop sitting by the Holy Spirit?
Colton nodded vigorously, smiling at what seemed a pleasant memory. Yep. Pop came up to me and said, Is Todd your dad? And I said yes. And Pop said, Hes my grandson.
How many times, when I presided over a funeral, had mourners delivered the usual well-meaning platitudes: Well, shes in a better place, or We know hes looking down on us, smiling, or Youll see him again. Of course, I believed those things in theory, but to be honest, I couldnt picture them. Now, with what Colton had said about Pop and about his sister, I began to think about heaven in a different way. Not just a place with jeweled gates, shining rivers, and streets of gold, but a realm of joy and fellowship, both for those who are with us in eternity and those still on earth, whose arrival we eagerly anticipated. A place where I would one day walk and talk with my grandfather who had meant so much to me, and with the daughter I had never met.
With all my heart, I wanted to believe. At that moment, the details of our conversations began to pile up in my mind like a stack of Polaroidspictures of heaven that seemed uncannily accurate from the descriptions we all have available to us in the Bibleall of us who can read, that is. But these details were obscure to most adults, much less a kid
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