Experience Description



Here is a clip on YouTube of me standing by this very same river and talking about my experience. I was seven years old and, as children usually are at that age, I wanted to be like the other children around me. By this time, I had already noticed that I was different from other children in my town because of my financial status.) My meeting with God in an out-of-body experience happened, I think because of my natural childish idea that I could prove to the other children that whatever they could do, I could do, too.

I crossed the river from one side to the other, just like they did. But when they got to the other side, they kept on walking toward their homes. I remember so clearly that when I arrived on the other side, I suddenly realized that 'Oops, I have to turn around and go back!' so I could go home. I was already tired because the water was so deep that it took all my strength to get through it.

You can get a feeling of what it was like for a seven-year-old girl to walk through this river. It's not very wide, but it runs deep as it cuts through the meadow.

On my way back, right in middle of pushing my way back through the river's water, I suddenly felt myself so tired that I sat down in the water right where I was. I can't explain how I left my body, but it reminds me of John 8:51 'Truly, I say unto you, anyone who keeps my word, he shall never see death.' I remember that suddenly I was in Heaven, standing before an angel who was holding the Book of the Lamb. To me, it seemed to be a wonderfully friendly place. Of course, I was surprised to be there, but I really liked it from the first moment of my arrival.

While I was looking around and getting know the place, suddenly I heard a man's voice saying to me, 'You need to go back. Your time has not yet come!' I didn't see who was talking to me, but I felt his voice echoing deep down inside my body. Right away, I was back on Earth where my body was. When I saw my body with bubbles coming out of it, I knew what had happened.

Then, as I was looking at my body, I was somehow back inside it again. I realized that no one had discovered me yet, so I stood up in the water like nothing had happened. And because what I had experienced had been very shocking to me, I ran home as fast as I could and rushed into my house without saying anything to anyone. It reminds to me of what is written in Isaiah 43:2: 'Even when you cross deep rivers, I will be with you, and you will not drown.'

Background Information:

Gender: Female

Date NDE Occurred: Summer 1992

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Yes Drowning I suppose that for those 1-2 min while I was under water my breathing wasn`t working.

How do you consider the content of your experience? Both pleasant AND distressing

The experience included: Out of body experience

Did you feel separated from your body? No I clearly left my body and existed outside it

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal everyday consciousness and alertness? More consciousness and alertness than normal After it had happened and I saw those bubbles coming out of my body, I understood exactly what was going on with my body. When I was back in my body, I got a shocked feeling from all that had happened to me. It caused me to be intensely alert. You can imagine that as a seven year old child, listening to the voice of a man echoing way down deep inside in your body would be a very strange experience.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? My spirit knew what was going on with me. I think that when I was back in my body, I became fully alert regarding what had just happened moments ago.

Were your thoughts speeded up? Faster than usual

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? Everything seemed to be happening at once; or time stopped or lost all meaning Time seemed to be different in this place from what it is in the earthly realm. Because of its unusual feelings of friendliness and acceptance, and because of hearing this voice echoing deep inside my body, I knew that I was in some other world: heaven.

Were your senses more vivid than usual? More vivid than usual

Please compare your vision during the experience to your everyday vision that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. When I was out of my body, I was a spiritual being and was capable of seeing and sensing more than it is possible while in body.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. It was on higher level.

Did you seem to be aware of things going on elsewhere? No

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? No

Did you see any beings in your experience? No

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings? Uncertain I didn't fully know who the man was who was talking to me. I sensed that it might be Jesus.

The experience included: Unearthly light

Did you see, or feel surrounded by, a brilliant light? A light clearly of mystical or other-worldly origin

Did you see an unearthly light? Yes The light that was in that place was different: an unearthly light that was extremely bright but not at all painful to my eyes.

The experience included: A landscape or city

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? A clearly mystical or unearthly realm

The experience included: Strong emotional tone

What emotions did you feel during the experience? A feeling of friendliness, acceptance and love while I was sensing the atmosphere of the place, and then when I was told that I had to go back, I felt sad.

Did you have a feeling of peace or pleasantness? Relief or calmness

Did you have a feeling of joy? Happiness

Did you feel a sense of harmony or unity with the universe? I felt no longer in conflict with nature

The experience included: Special knowledge or purpose

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything? Everything about the universe

Did scenes from your past come back to you? No

The experience included: Awareness of the future

Did scenes from the future come to you? No

The experience included: Boundary

Did you reach a boundary or limiting physical structure? Yes I suppose that I did, because if I hadn't, then Jesus would not have said to me that my time had not come yet.

Did you come to a border or point of no return? I came to a barrier that I was not permitted to cross; or was sent back against my will Even though I really wanted to stay in that place so full of friendliness and love. I chose to follow the voice.

God, Spiritual and Religion:


What importance did you place on your religious/spiritual life prior to your experience? Slightly important to me

What was your religion prior to your experience? Unaffiliated- Nothing in particular- Religious unaffiliated at that time, in age of 7 I was heard from my mom that there is God and Jesus etc but I didn`t knew them then very well.

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? Uncertain Eleven years later, after a period of searching, I received Jesus into my life as my personal savior.

What importance do you place on your religious/spiritual life after your experience? Greatly important to me

What is your religion now? Christian- Protestant For now I had been believer for ten years and I have BA in theology and I am learning at my master.

Did your experience include features consistent with your earthly beliefs? Content that was entirely not consistent with the beliefs you had at the time of your experience I was only maybe once heard that there is Jesus or God and nothing else.

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? No I believe in the existence of God and Jesus.

The experience included: Presence of unearthly beings

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice? I encountered a definite being, or a voice clearly of mystical or unearthly origin I heard a man's voice, clearly of mystical or unearthly origin, saying to me that my time had not yet come and I had to go back. The strange thing about it was that I didn't hear it with my ears. It echoed way down deep inside of my body.

Did you see deceased or religious spirits? No

Did you encounter or become aware of any beings who previously lived on earth who are described by name in religions (for example: Jesus, Muhammad, Buddha, etc.)? Uncertain I didn`t knew fully who this man really was who was talking to me. I supposed that this might be JEsus.

During your experience, did you gain information about premortal existence? Yes I realized that I am eternal being.

During your experience, did you gain information about universal connection or oneness? No

Did you believe in the existence of God prior to your experience? God probably exists

During your experience, did you gain information about the existence of God? No

Do you believe in the existence of God after your experience? God definitely exists

Concerning our Earthly lives other than Religion:


During your experience, did you gain special knowledge or information about your purpose? No

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant prior to your experience? Are possibly meaningful and significant

During your experience, did you gain information about the meaning of life? Uncertain from those words of Jesus I suppose that there is purpose of my earthly life.

Did you believe in an afterlife prior to your experience? I was uncertain if an afterlife exists

Do you believe in an afterlife after your experience? An afterlife definitely exists Yes Because I was alive in another existence, that I was spiritual being gave me evidence.

Did you fear death prior to your experience? I slightly feared death

Do you fear death after your experience? I moderately fear death

Were you fearful living your life prior to your experience? Moderately fearful in living my earthly life

Were you fearful living your life after your experience? Slightly fearful in living my earthly life

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant prior to your experience? Are possibly meaningful and significant

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant after your experience? Are meaningful and significant

Did you gain information about how to live our lives? No

During your experience, did you gain information about life's difficulties, challenges and hardships? No

Were you compassionate prior to your experience? Not compassionate toward others

During your experience, did you gain information about love? Yes I felt in this place such feeling of love.

Were you compassionate after your experience? Moderately compassionate toward others

What life changes occurred in your life after your experience? Moderate changes in my life Some results of this visit to Heaven were as follows: I became different from others physically, too. I began to become bigger in my body. I remember my mother saying to me at that age, 'suddenly you are getting bigger!' I became very sensitive to the spiritual world and I began to read a lot. At first, I read easy books. As I get older, I began to read deeper and deeper books: about psychology, religion, and magic. Now, as I look back on it, I understand that it had happened the way it did because my spirit had already begun to search for truth. Then this experience happened: this trip to Heaven, showing me the truth of the eternal. (See Ephesians 1:13.) Moderate changes in my life.

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? No No

After the NDE:


Was the experience difficult to express in words? Yes

How accurately do you remember the experience in comparison to other life events that occurred around the time of the experience? I remember the experience as accurately as other life events that occurred around the time of the experience

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes I am very sensitive to the spiritual world and to energy around me.

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? In that place, I felt such feelings of love. I realized that I am an eternal being. Because I had been alive in another existence, and not in my body, this gave me evidence that I was a spiritual being.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes I shared it thirteen years later after I had come to God and I understood more about what had happened to me.

Did you have any knowledge of near death experience (NDE) prior to your experience? No

What did you believe about the reality of your experience shortly (days to weeks) after it happened? Experience was definitely real It was real.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real It was real.

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience? Yes I had several Heavenly visitations after it.

Is there anything else that you would like to add about your experience? I remember the experience as accurately as other life events that occurred around the time of the experience. I had only once heard that there is Jesus or God, and nothing else.

Are there any other questions that we could ask to help you communicate your experience? It is too long.