What is like to die and how do we know a God is truly waiting for us when we do die?
Anonymous,
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2 Responses to “What is like to die and how do we know a God is truly waitin…”
Pamela Dean
2009-09-05 20:43:39
Dear friend, I invite you to explore mormon.org for the answers to some of your questions, particularly the section on "life after death". This article in the Encyclopedia of Mormonism explains the LDS views of death. "Gospel Topics: Death, Physical" at lds.org also has great information.
The best answer that I know God will be waiting for us when we return to Him is because he wants us to return to Him. Prophets both ancient and modern have told us so. God is our Heavenly Father. As a parent myself, I cannot imagine my daughter returning home after a long absence without also imagining the joyous reunion that would occur. Likewise, I have faith that my Heavenly Father would do the same, as we are patterned after Him. I guess, then, that it comes down to a matter of faith.
As for what it is like to die... We are told in scriptures and by prophets that physical death is simply the separation of the spirit from the physical body. The spirit contains our intelligence, and we are taught that this intelligence will stay with us. This is one of the reasons that we as latter day saints are taught to gain as much education as we can. Pmh Atwater is an internationally recognized leading authority on near-death experiences, having investigated over 3000 of them. This is a summary of what she says in her book "Beyond the Light" (1994). It appears to corraborate the LDS belief of life after death.
What it feels like to die: Any pain to be suffered comes first. Instinctively you fight to live. That is automatic... Your body goes limp. Your heart stops. No more air flows in or out. You lose sight, feeling, and movement although the ability to hear goes last. Identity ceases. The "you" that you once were becomes only a memory. There is no pain at the moment of death. Only peaceful silence... Calm... Quiet. But you still exist... The biggest surprise for most people in dying is to realize that dying does not end life. Whether darkness or light comes next, or some kind of event, be it positive, negative, or somewhere in-between, expected or unexpected, the biggest surprise of all is to realize you are still you. You can still think, you can still remember, you can still see, hear, move, reason, wonder, feel, question, and tell jokes if you wish. You are still alive, very much alive... If you expect to die when you die you will be disappointed... When you die you lose your body. That's all there is to it. Nothing else is lost.
Richard
2009-09-06 03:20:22
I've heard many stories of near death experinces and what peole go through and I feel that many of them are just that, people telling stories. From the book of Alma in the Book of Mormon we read:
"Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrectionbehold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life. And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow. And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of the wicked, yea, who are evilfor behold, they have no part nor portion of the spirit of the Lord; for behold, they chose evil works rather than good; therefore the spirit of the devil did enter into them, and take possession of their houseand these shall be cast out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, and this because of their own iniquity, being led captive by the will of the devil."
Here we find again reasons to be and do good in this life so we can obtain that level of peace spoken of for those spirits who enter paradise. Luckily we also have had revealed how the actual mission of Jesus Christ is to save all of our Father's children who have the desire to be with him again. Now this isn't a license to go party, to eat drink and be merry, but a hope for those who may have though ignorance already had times of eating, drinking, and being merry and who desire a change to that lifestyle as they've found it to be empty.
The prophet Alma a few chapters later, recorded in the Book of Mormon, explains:
"I say unto thee, my son, that the plan of restoration is requisite with the justice of God; for it is requisite that all things should be restored to their proper order. Behold, it is requisite and just, according to the power and resurrection of Christ, that the soul of man should be restored to its body, and that every part of the body should be restored to itself. And it is requisite with the justice of God that men should be judged according to their works; and if their works were good in this life, and the desires of their hearts were good, that they should also, at the last day, be restored unto that which is good. And if their works are evil they shall be restored unto them for evil. Therefore, all things shall be restored to their proper order, every thing to its natural framemortality raised to immortality, corruption to incorruptionraised to endless happiness to inherit the kingdom of God, or to endless misery to inherit the kingdom of the devil, the one on one hand, the other on the other. The one raised to happiness according to his desires of happiness, or good according to his desires of good; and the other to evil according to his desires of evil; for as he has desired to do evil all the day long even so shall he have his reward of evil when the night cometh. And so it is on the other hand. If he hath repented of his sins, and desired righteousness until the end of his days, even so he shall be rewarded unto righteousness."
So the exact answer to your question is: yes God is waiting for you, and he is very aware of your state in life, wants to help you if you're having problems, and wants also to have you return home to Him. So in the words of Mormon the last Nephite prophet: "And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever. Amen."
I bare you that testimony, and add my own in knowing that the things which are writen are true, in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ, amen.
The best answer that I know God will be waiting for us when we return to Him is because he wants us to return to Him. Prophets both ancient and modern have told us so. God is our Heavenly Father. As a parent myself, I cannot imagine my daughter returning home after a long absence without also imagining the joyous reunion that would occur. Likewise, I have faith that my Heavenly Father would do the same, as we are patterned after Him. I guess, then, that it comes down to a matter of faith.
As for what it is like to die... We are told in scriptures and by prophets that physical death is simply the separation of the spirit from the physical body. The spirit contains our intelligence, and we are taught that this intelligence will stay with us. This is one of the reasons that we as latter day saints are taught to gain as much education as we can. Pmh Atwater is an internationally recognized leading authority on near-death experiences, having investigated over 3000 of them. This is a summary of what she says in her book "Beyond the Light" (1994). It appears to corraborate the LDS belief of life after death.
What it feels like to die: Any pain to be suffered comes first. Instinctively you fight to live. That is automatic... Your body goes limp. Your heart stops. No more air flows in or out. You lose sight, feeling, and movement although the ability to hear goes last. Identity ceases. The "you" that you once were becomes only a memory. There is no pain at the moment of death. Only peaceful silence... Calm... Quiet. But you still exist... The biggest surprise for most people in dying is to realize that dying does not end life. Whether darkness or light comes next, or some kind of event, be it positive, negative, or somewhere in-between, expected or unexpected, the biggest surprise of all is to realize you are still you. You can still think, you can still remember, you can still see, hear, move, reason, wonder, feel, question, and tell jokes if you wish. You are still alive, very much alive... If you expect to die when you die you will be disappointed... When you die you lose your body. That's all there is to it. Nothing else is lost.
"Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrectionbehold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life. And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow. And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of the wicked, yea, who are evilfor behold, they have no part nor portion of the spirit of the Lord; for behold, they chose evil works rather than good; therefore the spirit of the devil did enter into them, and take possession of their houseand these shall be cast out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, and this because of their own iniquity, being led captive by the will of the devil."
Here we find again reasons to be and do good in this life so we can obtain that level of peace spoken of for those spirits who enter paradise. Luckily we also have had revealed how the actual mission of Jesus Christ is to save all of our Father's children who have the desire to be with him again. Now this isn't a license to go party, to eat drink and be merry, but a hope for those who may have though ignorance already had times of eating, drinking, and being merry and who desire a change to that lifestyle as they've found it to be empty.
The prophet Alma a few chapters later, recorded in the Book of Mormon, explains:
"I say unto thee, my son, that the plan of restoration is requisite with the justice of God; for it is requisite that all things should be restored to their proper order. Behold, it is requisite and just, according to the power and resurrection of Christ, that the soul of man should be restored to its body, and that every part of the body should be restored to itself. And it is requisite with the justice of God that men should be judged according to their works; and if their works were good in this life, and the desires of their hearts were good, that they should also, at the last day, be restored unto that which is good. And if their works are evil they shall be restored unto them for evil. Therefore, all things shall be restored to their proper order, every thing to its natural framemortality raised to immortality, corruption to incorruptionraised to endless happiness to inherit the kingdom of God, or to endless misery to inherit the kingdom of the devil, the one on one hand, the other on the other. The one raised to happiness according to his desires of happiness, or good according to his desires of good; and the other to evil according to his desires of evil; for as he has desired to do evil all the day long even so shall he have his reward of evil when the night cometh. And so it is on the other hand. If he hath repented of his sins, and desired righteousness until the end of his days, even so he shall be rewarded unto righteousness."
So the exact answer to your question is: yes God is waiting for you, and he is very aware of your state in life, wants to help you if you're having problems, and wants also to have you return home to Him. So in the words of Mormon the last Nephite prophet: "And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever. Amen."
I bare you that testimony, and add my own in knowing that the things which are writen are true, in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ, amen.