A few years back, I worked on a book idea with a guy who had a pretty intriguing personal story. It was one of those stories that makes you shake your head and question whether it could even be true, but he had a way of making it convincing. In a nutshell, he grew up with an abusive family, who largely abandoned him, and left him as a street kid. He related to me one sad story of survival after another. He grew up angry, and he grew up mean and it was in that state, that he encountered Jesus via a near-death, or as he would say it, a death experience. He was declared dead, toe tagged. and was lying in the morgue, when he found himself in the arms of Jesus. It was a surprise to him because he was pretty sure if there was an after-life, he’d be in the place where the not so highly esteemed people go.
Now, here he was, literally resting in the arms of Jesus, looking into the most glowing, loving face he had ever seen. He said no artist rendering had ever captured the face of the One he met that day. As his eyes adjusted to the light, he realized that colors all around him were more vivid than he had ever seen before. Jesus talked to him tenderly and told him he could rest there a bit, but that it wasn’t his time yet, and so he would have to go back to his body and finish his mission on earth. Up till then, he’d been a scoundrel, simply lying and cheating his way through life. He never knew he was a man on a mission. As he got used to the scene around him, he realized there were several beings, angels he imagined, who were standing right in front of them. He recognized one of the angels as being in the room where he passed away. He was told that every person on earth is assigned an angel team. That team is with you from your first breath to your last. No one is ever alone!
When he asked Jesus how he got there, Jesus reminded him of the day he answered an altar call as a kid. He’d walked down to the front of a church and declared his commitment to Christ. Jesus had been with him ever since. Now Jesus had a job for him to do and he couldn’t return to heaven until it was done. As soon as he understood what he was to do, he found himself back in his body. He went through numerous surgeries to get back on his feet, but when he was able, he began the mission. His job was to tell street kids that God was real and that they had a Father in Heaven who loved them.
From all accounts, he did everything he was asked to do with gusto because he couldn’t wait to get back to heaven. He said nothing on earth was as glorious as that. He finally realized he had never been abandoned because God was always with him. He’s there now, and I trust he’s still smiling.
It seems like a comforting thought for any of us.