Book Review #2: 90 Minutes in Heaven

I just decided to attach the document I turned in for our Saturday assignment. Afterall, our assignment was to read and write a summary of what we read.

Assignment for Saturday, November 22nd
Before I begin with my summary I feel as though I need to preface my writing. I noticed on the website that you commented on the first book that I posted…The Shack, and I am afraid if I don’t give some explanation leading into this second book you may think of me as morbid. In the summer of July 2007, Lane, my youngest son, died very tragically in a drowning accident. Since then I have begun to look at life in a much different manner…I have been a Christian for many years and quite frankly, my faith is the only reason I am able to function daily. That being said, I know where my child is…he is no doubt in Heaven; however, reading books that deal with similar situations somehow offers me another sense of comfort.
The name of my second book is 90 Minutes in Heaven. I came upon this book in a round-about way. My Nana gave me a book by the same author after my son passed away, its title is Heaven is Real (also a good read!), and I began to read it one day, but it kept making references to this other book (90 Minutes in Heaven) so I decided to put down that book and buy 90 Minutes in Heaven. I purchased the book sometime ago, but never got around to reading it until lately. The author of the book tells of his personal experience. He is/was a pastor at a church in Texas. (This also intrigued me because I grew up in Southeast Texas, and the church he pastored was only about an hour from where I lived.) The pastor had been to a convention in Livingston, TX for Baptist ministers, and on the way home was in a fatal car accident. (Another interesting fact: I used to vacation in Livingston…we had a lake house there, so I traveled many times on the very road he had the accident.) He tells of his experience…he was driving down the road and the next thing he remembers was being at the gates of Heaven. He explains each of the people who were at the gates to greet him and welcome him there…they each played a pivotal role in his Christian life and they were exactly as he remembered them on earth, but without flaw. One thing that really spoke to me was the joy he felt…he didn’t think one time about the people he left behind or what he left behind…he only felt overwhelming joy and happiness to be in this special place. (This comforts me so much…I think for a long time I was scared to die because of what I was leaving behind, not because of where I thought I might end up. After Lane died I realized that I didn’t have any reason to be scared anymore because I know he will be waiting there to greet me too! I was also comforted to think that Lane wasn’t longing to be with us---as sad as it may seem to us here.) He also talks about the angels singing which is a wonderful thought. As he continues he tells about a preacher who came to pray for him at the accident. The firemen and paramedics had already pronounced him dead, but the preacher told them that God wanted him to pray with the victim, so they allowed him to go to his mangled car. He had to climb through the trunk just to get close enough to him to pray with him. He was “legally dead” for 90 minutes here on earth. He woke up singing along with the preacher in the car with him. They rushed him to the hospital where he was life-lighted to Houston Medical Center. He was in excruciating pain and was in and out of consciousness due to the pain. He underwent an experimental surgery to put his body back together. He was in a “coma state” for about two weeks…he finally woke up, still in pain. When he finally woke up he was angry because he couldn’t understand why God would send him back to earth to be an invalid (which was how he felt because he was completely immobile) and in extreme pain. He was also a very independent individual. He was used to doing for himself and taking care of everyone else. Now, he was the one that had to be cared for and he didn’t much care for it. The book walks you step by step through this journey. He also comes to a realization that God has purpose for his decisions and he sees this when he is able to help others because of his experience. I don’t want to give away the whole book, but it is a great read. I am not one of those people who read constantly…I just never seem to find the time. This book isn’t really long, so it could easily be read in a few hours, and it is more than worth it. I think this book would be great for anyone, not just those who have suffered great tragedies. I hope you find the time to add this book to your list of books to read!