Heaven is Real
I’ll start this miracle with a confession. I have never once cried over my mother’s passing.
This is why.
I got a call before 3 AM on a Sunday in May that staff found my mom seizing and unresponsive. She was headed from the nursing home to the ED, after three months on hospice, battling flus, bronchitis, pneumonia, and a stroke. Her favorite doctor “just happened to be at the hospital,” (read miracle here), saw her name, and came to the ED to talk with me. He said she would not come back.
Often, Mom had me promise to stay with her when she transitioned. I was grateful to God that I could. From Sunday to Wednesday morning, Mom never spoke. When she became agitated with pain, I rang for nurses. I sang to her, read the Bible, recounted memories, never once turning on the television. Never leaving except to grab a coffee.
No one could have been more shocked when Wednesday morning at eleven, she opened her eyes wide and gasped in awe. “I see heaven!”
I stood beside her, my husband, my sister, and my niece nearby, as Mom talked to a gathering of saints in the ceiling. “There’s Mama. And Daddy too.” She spoke as though she was narrating while looking through a window. At times, she gasped in breathlessness at what was unfolding above her. She saw my father and then “Pop” my beloved stepfather. Mom said with wonder in her voice, “they are friends now.” Certainly, they never were on earth.
At times when her eyes widened in amazement, her mouth dropping in awe, I would prompt her with, “what is it, Mom? What do you see?”
“I see all of my dogs! And my horses! All of them! They are right there! It is all so beautiful!”
Her eyes moved around the space above her, she was completely enthralled. “And I have a beautiful new home. I have never seen anything that beautiful. And it smells soooo good.” My mom had lost her sense of smell years before.
Although she responded to my questions, her whole being was caught up in the miraculous vision God had gifted her, and us through her. The incredible miracle of her ability to speak and share it was made even more astounding after three and a half days of coma and comfort care.
My mom suffered from anxiety all of her life. But that day she sighed as she said, “Finally, I feel peace.”
For at least twenty minutes she dozed off and on, seeing heaven and resting, then awakening in breathless awe and wonder.
Each time she reopened her eyes, her amazement and joy were recreated as though it was the first time she had seen heaven.
When she looked and said, “Oh my! I see a big shine. A big big shine.” With no hesitation, I told her she could go towards that big shine.
Noon on Wednesday, those were my mom’s last words. She closed her eyes again and immediately I felt certain she would not reopen them. Her whole body relaxed differently.
Staying with her night and day, the change after she saw heaven, was drastic. It seemed clear what made mom, mom, was with Jesus. I likened it to a car running unattended in the driveway until the gas was gone. She breathed, but she wasn’t there, and I knew she was not coming back.
Doctors, nurses, and hospice all noticed the shift too.
It wasn’t until the early hours of predawn Friday that I heard a difference in her breathing. As I had hundreds of times, I stood beside her and held her hand, keeping the promise that I would be with her at the end. When she breathed her last, I waited. But Mom had been gone since Wednesday. It was just her shell that had taken in air and expelled it.
I rang for nurses and told them there was no rush, but Mom had passed. When two beautiful caring souls responded, I smiled as I told them that Mom had asked me to make two promises. The first one was that I would stay with her when she was dying. The second was that I ask two people to confirm her death, quoting her wishes, “Be double-dog sure before they send me to that morgue.”
The nurses each performed an assessment. They asked if I was okay. I answered, “How could I not be? She saw heaven right in front of me. She proved heaven is real. And I have no doubt she’s there.”
The Conversation
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Hi, I am Deborah! Thank you for joining me.
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The Conversation
Well I have tears. Love This – Thank You for Sharing.
Kathy
I pray that many people will have more peace and faith knowing what an incredible miracle happened that day. Thank you.
What a beautiful experience for your mom and you and what perfect timing for me to read this. I went to Arlington Cemetery yesterday for my husband’s funeral. He died almost two years ago and we could finally have this scheduled. It was a beautiful service and attended by many family members do the timing was really perfect considering all the COVID issues. We had a female Episcopal minister who did a wonderful service and quoted from Revelation about the new Jerusalem coming to earth. I never knew what my husband’s beliefs as like many men snd typical WWII men, he just did not talk or share about what he felt were private matters. He was such a loving and caring man that I hope and pray he truly believed as I know the requirements to have your name in the Lamb’s book of life and I cannot stand the thought of not knowing at times. Good works or a good life does not get your name in that book, only a relationship with Jesus does. I have to choose not to dwell on those thoughts as it breaks my heart. Thanks for your sharing, I have no doubt about heaven as I have experienced hell on earth. For me, hell is separation from God not anything man can inflict on me.
Beautifully said. I like meditating on the thief on the cross beside Jesus, without a lifetime of service or good works, he simply believed at the last minute and it was enough. We serve a merciful God. And I totally agree with you, hell is separation from God and heaven here is knowing him. Heaven there….well I look forward to my reunions and my pets, my beautiful new mansion as promised in the Bible, and not having to worry about life at all! Your husband’s service to our country is so appreciated. I’m glad he was honored.
Hi Deborah it’s Renee Jamison’s mommy. I’m not on Facebook anymore but still receiving your blog. This really helped me today, I still struggle with what if there is no heaven and I’ll never see Jamison again. Then I read this and it let me know that I have nothing to worry about heaven is real and when it’s my time my baby will be there waiting on me! Thank you so much for this reminder! And thank your dear sweet mom for telling you what she saw!
Hi Renee, I’ve missed you and the precious pictures of Jamison. I am so glad you got to read this today because hearing what she saw changed my life forever. You have changed my life too. So many people can’t say the name of a child they have lost, you introduce him to people like me and I learned to love him! It is so good to hear from you and know you continue a beautiful healing journey. Somehow when I witnessed Mom’s encounter with heaven, I knew it could impact many more than the three of us (and hospital staff) that witnessed it. Take care and if we don’t meet before then, I’ll be finding you and Jamison in heaven.
Deborah
This was so beautiful. Thank you for sharing.
Paula
And thank you for taking the time to write this. I appreciate it so much.
Blessed assurance is surely ours! Sight of that is an unparalleled gift that we can all enjoy. I Love this!! Thank you!
My heart wishes everyone could “KNOW” what I know without a shadow of a doubt now. If they had been there, if they had known my mom beforehand… Truly God gifted us and I pray through me, many others.
What a beautiful blessing!! My family saw a huge angel trumpeting mom’s welcome into heaven. Great Joy and yet, we miss her so!!
Patti I love reading this. I hope you’ll email me (or you can answer here) but I’d love to know how big that “huge” angel was because I’ve seen huge angels before when I was a child. Thank you for the comment. We are so blessed to know that heaven is real instead of hope.