Story Description:
On the way home from a conference, Don Piper's car was crushed by a semi that crossed into his lane. Medical personnel said he died instantly. While his body lay lifeless inside the ruins of his car, Piper experienced the glories of heaven, awed by its beauty and music.
Ninety minutes after the wreck, while a minister prayed for him, Piper miraculously returned to life on earth with only the memory of inexpressible heavenly bliss. His faith in God was severely tested as he faced an uncertain and grueling recovery. Now he shares his life-changing story with you.
90 Minutes in Heaven offers a glimpse into a very real dimension of God's reality. It encourages those recovering from serious injuries and those dealing with the loss of a loved one. The experience dramatically changed Piper's life, and it will change yours too.
Don Piper has been an ordained minister since 1985.
My Review:
Can you imagine waking up and finding out that you'd been dead for the past hour and a half? In January of 1989, that is exactly what happened to 38-year-old Don Piper, and during those 90 minutes he was in heaven!
His description of the sights, sounds, colours, and music in heaven were magnificent, a proper description defies words.
His recovery was inordinately long and excruciatingly painful. He still lives 24/7 with intense pain and his condition profoundly affected his emotions during his recovery. He was reluctant to talk to a psychiatrist or counsellor for how would he explain being in heaven for 90 minutes? They'd think he was truly crazy! Don knew what he saw in heaven but feared they'd think he was delusional and how could he sound rational saying he wanted to die because he wanted to go back to heaven? Don decided not to speak to anyone of what he saw as his "intimate experience". After his experience in heaven, he didn't want to remain here trapped in this world of pain and begged God to take him back.
The gamut of negative emotions Don felt during his recovery was so self-defeating but I believe necessary. He had to endure the pain, the depression, the anger, the underlying hostility and refusal to allow anyone to help him with anything in order to grow spiritually and understand his real role in this life. It was almost like going through the grief process but he stumbled terribly at some of those stages while quickly comprehending others. At one point he becomes paranoid thinking the nurses were conspiring against him. He wanted instant black and white answers to questions from his doctor's where none existed. All they could offer were the "gray" areas and that was just not acceptable to Don. He couldn't figure out "why" God had sent him back to ensure all the pain and agony he was going through.
Aside from the tortuous and painful recovery Don received a cache of miracles from God which you can read about in the story. But God needed Don to experience certain things and learn from those things before providing him the miracles, in my opinion, that he deserved.
I would highly recommend this book for anyone who has lost a loved one, is recovering from a serious illness, or had a near death experience themselves. Excellent!
