Presented below is my "near death" experience. Those of you who have truly had one, please share your experience.

Dr. O.S. Hawkins used to say, "An inward impression, without an outward expression, is depression." That's part of the reason why I wanted to share with you the "near death" experience I had in February 1997, when I died from the flu for several minutes. My fever went over 107 degrees Fahrenheit and, instantaneously, I was suddenly in another realm. I cared nothing about what I had left behind and I only wanted to go towards the most indescribably beautiful place I had ever seen--a place that radiated the softest, most pure, white light imaginable. I was clearly seeing heaven, or a portal to heaven, from afar. It was a place of substantial size, some distance ahead of me, but below and to my left. As I moved along through space, my mind functioned no differently than before I died. I did not need glasses to see distances, either, like I normally do. Even though I did not have the sense that I had changed mentally, I was not aware of having a body. I do not remember noticing my arms or legs. I also did not notice seeing any stars, so heaven must be way above the stars.

While most of my focus was on going towards the beautiful white light, I noticed towards the end of my experience that Jesus was off to my right in more subdued light watching me. He was in the shadows, so to speak. Some people I have shared this story with have asked me how I knew it was Jesus. I said, "You you could just tell." There was no doubt in my mind it was Jesus. Jesus looked like James Caviezel in "The Passion of the Christ." The most incredible thing I remember about Jesus’ appearance was His eyes. His haunting eyes gave me the feeling that He could see right through me. He tracked me like a laser, as I moved along, and He had a no nonsense countenance on his face.

Then, just as suddenly, I came back to life. Apparently, my fever was starting to brake. My wife, who was Director of Surgery of a Texas hospital, was there when it happened.

The other reason I wanted to share this experience with you is because I believe I had it for a purpose. That purpose is to testify to the world that I have seen Jesus and heaven. They both really exist. Through Dr. O.S. Hawkins’ outward call to get involved with Evangelism Explosion 25 years ago, I heard God’s inward call to me to become an evangelist. This is now part of my testimony to you and to the world.

At the age of 15, I was attacked by a stranger. At the end of it he began to strangle me and bang my head into the ground. I fought with everything I had in me. In the time-warped slow motion experience of it, I could see I was losing the fight and so I quit fighting and just lay there. I acknowledged to myself, "I am dead". And once I acknowledged that a sudden and unexpected big shift occurred. As a result of laying relatively still under him, I ended up looking into his face for the first time (when you are fighting like that, you are not really looking).

He choked all the air off. As I began to lose consciousness, I saw past this reality. I learned there is more after death. The love was just so overwhelming, like you said. I suddenly could see that if we knew now what we suddenly learn then, we would not treat each other in the shabby ways we do, ever. There was nothing to defend suddenly. I also learned that we are all accountable for what we do - ALL of it.

And in knowing this and looking closely into that guy's face, I realised one day he would live, or learn dying even, to regret terribly what he had done. And strangely enough my heart broke for him right then and there. I can tell you it remains broken to this day. Then the police arrived and saved me. My life was never the same again.

I did not see any religious figures or recognizable people, however there was an undeniable solid sense of being in a presence - what that was I could not determine.

I was pretty messed up and I denied all this to myself for a number of years. It was too much for the scientist in me to grapple with but I eventually came to an understanding. That pivotal moment and all that I learned in it is very much embedded in many of my beliefs and actions today.

Although I do public speaking about recovery from PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) I rarely talk in detail about this aspect of it. Thanks.

Ive had two near deaths and saw nothing but a silent and dark void. No one was there, no voices sounds lights or music. I think this is because neither time was destined for me so no one knew I was coming. I sure hope they were soon on there way thou, not the sort of place anyone wants to hang around waiting in.

Well, these aren't exactly the type of near-death experiences that you are looking for but the closest times I have ever come to death were (in cronological order)...

1) When I was 14 in Hawaii... I had bought a boogie board. Decided on a whim to buy the leash, too. Was at north shore, oahu when a big samoin came over the top of my wave and cracked upside the head with his surf board (this is days after hearing these stories of boogie boarder deaths by another samoan in Wikiki). I was caught right in the break... total slow motion... didn't know which way was up... not a strong swimmer.. just took a fin to the head... only thing that saved me was feeling that leash on my wrist, grabbing it and pulling...

2) Driving down the road about 30 mph, heard a strange noise like something hit my car... didn't think much of it... woke up the next morning and realized there was a bullet hole about 3 feet directly in front of where my chest was when I was sitting in the car.

3) My buddy Leon was at my house... we always had guns around. For some reason, my shotgun was left loaded and the safety was off. Leon was pointing it at my head... messing around. Stood there for a second, then stopped. Opened the chamber to see that it was loaded and saw the safety was off. He turned white as a ghost... told me that for absolutely no reason at all, he had decided not to mess around and pull the trigger. He assumed it was empty and was going to pull the trigger just for the "click" effect... but, on a whim, decided not to.

4) Rock climbing at a place called Webber Falls. Not real rock climbing.. just scaling up a cliff because I was young and invincible... no robes.. no nothing. Got to a hard part.. couldn't see a hand hold. Had one shot to reach up and find one... reached up, couldn't find it, couldn't find it, couldn't find it... and you know that point of imbalance, just as you lose it? Well, I felt that inside.. I was falling and at that very last split second before I would have falled about 100 feet onto rocks, my hand found something to grab onto.

5) woke up ihn the hospital strapped to the bed... apparently, I had OD'ed and my heart rate was down to 33 bpm (1 beat away from cardiac arrest... then I would have gotten the shot of addrenaline straight to the heart)... anyway, came out of it.. don't know really how close to dying I was that day... doesn't seem like much at all in comparison.

6) A crack head had a gun in my mouth. (wont go into details here because they're just not necessary... a crack head with a gun in your mouth is just about as scary as it gets lol)

... someone has their eye on my up there ;)