As a young man I was very confused about moral values. Being raised as a Catholic exposed me to a strange system of beliefs that I found to be truly hypocritical. I decided that I could not believe in anything but the concrete. The pursuit of pleasure was my primary interest. I was sure that death was the end of our existence. This mindset led me to treat other people poorly, including my wife, Carrie, and family.

Then Carrie received a revelation from God (probably as a mercy for my poor treatment of her). She became a practicing mainline Christian, and I felt that she became a much better person. I admired her more than ever but still clung to my old beliefs. Several years later, life was not improved for me and I started to search for meaning in life. Specifically, I meditated on a rock song that caught my interest: “Show Me” (the meaning of the word) by The Pretenders. Shortly thereafter, I was shown.

One afternoon I was driving our car to pick our son up. Carrie had the radio set to a Christian station. I would normally switch to a rock station. But a pastor came over the radio with his testimony. He was Raul Ries. Raul was a black belt and a Vietnam vet, so I was attracted to what he was saying. Raul was all messed up in his life after serving in Vietnam but received a revelation that changed his life.

During this broadcast, my consciousness was lifted to a place where I was bodyless. No gravity or time could be discerned. Some communication occurred mentally with other entities but no memory of it remained. A bright light appeared and grew in strength. My first sense was that this was an immense power source, and I mentally drew back in fear. The light then enveloped me with unconditional love. I was amazed because I sure didn't merit love. Then a silent communication took place where I was asked if I wanted to stay. After I got over my shock of hearing this, I said sure I would. This was total love and bliss.

However, the next word was that I had to go back, and instantly I was back driving the car. Raul Ries was closing with the word that the bible was the true word of God and Jesus. WOW.

I assumed that this was an answer to my wife Carrie's prayers. It was not the answer to a specific prayer but to years of prayer for me by Carrie. I started going to church and reading the bible, wanting to know more. Mainline Christian churches were, however, a disappointment to me. I knew unconditional love was the truth. Judgement was not. Hell is bullsh-t. Both Carrie and I now believe that we are eternal spirits first and that we will return to that state. In the end, only we will judge ourselves

Carrie and I now love to listen to NDE testimonies on YouTube. These words resonate with me. I can directly relate to these experiences.

There were residual effects from my revelation. A bright white light would take me back in memory and shake my bones. I found my sense of discernment to be sharpened; my bones would shake when I heard a truth. Love songs, especially those about the spirit, would shake me. My love of bird hunting was gone, and gone without any discussion on the subject. I gave up fishing as well. These effects have subsided but are not gone, and I don't believe they ever will be. I am now sure that we are spirits first and last. Love is what powers the universe.