Minnie Goes to Heaven (84)

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When Minnie told John about what she would be doing for the upcoming Tuesday evenings, he suggested she talk to Pastor Peters about materials. “He knows about these things. Besides you need a solid backup, a church that’s got some responsibility over you when you do something like this.”

“I don’t think Pastor Peters would be much help, John. He really doesn’t relate to women all that well. It would be a waste of his time to have him involved.”

“Suit yourself.”

“Look, I’ve been to heaven. God is obviously behind this thing. That’s all the back-up anyone needs,” Minnie said.

The next day she found some basic study material at the bookstore. They just happened to have a dozen copies of a 7-step discipleship program in the store. Minnie bought the books. The first step was to become accountable, become part of a group that holds you to your commitment and keeps you on track. That is what the group at Nan’s house would do. They would hold each other accountable.

When Tuesday night came and Minnie tried to teach this concept, nobody seemed to get what she was talking about or why she was talking about it. They looked at her with question marks and boredom in their eyes. “Are you sure we need these books?” Nan asked.

“We just want you to teach us about Jesus—having a relationship with Him. Like how do you hear Him talking to you?” Amy said.

“Should I take the books back then?” Minnie asked.

“Works for me,” Nan offered.

Minnie collected the books. “I really don’t have anything else prepared,” Minnie said.

“Coffee anyone?” Nan asked.

Minnie Goes to Heaven (83)

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They decided to meet for coffee at Nan’s the next day. “You can help eat my three dozen leftover Christmas cookies,” Nan said.

When Minnie drove up to Nan’s, she had to park on the street because there were a row of cars in the lane way, and she was greeted by a dozen women sitting in the living room. 
“Surprise,” Nan said, “We were all at your talk on Sunday night and we all put a hand up. The thing is most of us don’t know much about church, so we got talking and we want you to teach us more about this stuff. At least then we won’t feel like a bunch of church dummies.”

‘Lord what do I say?’ Minnie prayed.

‘Say yes. I will lead you through.’

“Okay,” said Minnie to the roomful of women. “Have you figured out when you want to meet?”

“We thought Tuesday evenings right here would be good,” Nan said.

“Works for me,” Minnie said.

“We figured you can decide what we should learn,” Nan said. The others nodded.

They spent the rest of the evening getting to know each other, drinking coffee and finishing up Nan’s freezer stash of Christmas goodies. 
Minnie decided she would go to the Christian Bookstore in town to see what kind of material they had for a discipleship class. 

Minnie Goes to Heaven (82)

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“I guess we’ll wait and see,” John said as he shoved back his chair. “I’m off to the nursery. We’re starting some more plants today.”

Minnie felt somewhat lost for something to do. She decided to give her house a thorough cleaning, but first she would spend some quality time with the Lord. She took her new Amplified Bible to the Living Room. John had surprised her with this extra gift at Christmas. She began to read where the Bible fell open at Judges 16. The story was about Samson who God used despite his sinful life. Minnie prayed, “Lord use me, but show me my sin. Make me whiter than snow. I want to be pure before you.”

If she had known the pain that prayer could bring to her, she may not have prayed it quite so glibly.

As Minnie went about her house straightening and cleaning, she thought about her friend Nan. Nan had been at the meeting last night. She wondered if Nan had been one of those who raised her hand to receive Jesus as her personal Saviour. She decided to phone her.

Nan wasn’t home so she left a message on the answering machine, “Call me when you have a minute.”

Two minutes later the phone rang. It was Nan. “You called?” Minnie thought she might as well be up front—they had that kind of friendship.

“Just wondering what you thought of the meeting? I didn’t get a chance to talk to you. I did see you sitting way at the back.”

“Well, Minnie I didn’t think you were a public speaker...but you made a pretty convincing appeal. And, if you want to know I did put my hand up. That’s why you called isn’t it?”

“Oh Nan, I am so happy for you. Do want to get together? Will you be coming to church?”

“Hold it not so fast? I’m convinced I need a Saviour, but I am not at all convinced that I need a church.”

“I guess we should talk,” Minnie said. 

Minnie Goes to Heaven (81)

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Before Minnie had time to wonder what to say, Pastor Peters called on her to share her story. She went to the microphone and hung onto the sides of the large wooden pulpit to steady her trembling legs.

She looked across the audience. That is what they were, an audience. She recognized that they hadn't come to worship.

She started, “I am not here not to entertain you. If you came here to be entertained, you may be quite disappointed. I came here tonight because I am entirely grateful to the Lord. And my gratitude is not for what you might think. Yes, the Lord spared my life. My husband and children and some of you who know me thought I would probably die. To be truthful I think I did. Death is a wonderful thing.”

She went on for the next twenty minutes about the beauties of heaven and touched on the promise of a new heaven and a new earth after this heaven and this earth pass away. 
Then she did something that very rarely, if ever, happened in that church. She did an altar call. “The only way to receive this eternal life and avoid eternal death is to give your life to Jesus Christ. He is the only Way. If you want to make him the Lord of your life, put up your hand.” Hands all over the church shot up.
 At that point Minnie let Pastor Peter take over. He told the people to confess their sins, and to receive Jesus as their Savior. Then he led them in a prayer of confession and invited them to join a church.

When Minnie sat down, John put his arm around her. “You did good,” he said.

Minnie felt entirely drained. “I’m going to sleep well tonight,” she proclaimed. Contrary to what she thought, that night she took a very long time to fall asleep. She kept going over what God had given her to say and thanked him from the bottom of her heart for the ability to say it.

In the morning, just before she awoke, she dreamed she was back in heaven. She was partying with the people and angels in heaven in the meadow by her cottage. Everyone sang and danced and worshiped the King of Kings. 

“Lord, what now?” John prayed after Minnie shared her dream as they sat together at the breakfast table. They waited. They each heard a similar message. John heard, ‘wait.’ Minnie heard, ‘you’ll see.’

Minnie Goes to Heaven (80)

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When John and Minnie drove to the church that evening, they found the parking lot plugged and  the adjacent streets lined with cars. “I’ll let you off here,” John said as he pulled up to the church.  “Save me a spot. I’ll look for you near the front.”

Minnie went to the back entrance of the church—that way she could go up the back stairs and end up at the front of the sanctuary. When she peeked in she was more than surprised. The pews were filled, the balcony had been pressed into service, there were chairs in the aisles, and people standing at the back. And, the service wasn’t supposed to start for another ten minutes.

Pastor Peters saw her at the door. “Quite something, eh? I guess you have your testimonial all prepared?”

He said it like a question, but fortunately he wasn’t requiring an answer, or at least he didn’t wait for one.

The pastor pointed to a few seats in the front row with reserved signs on them, “For you and your husband.” He patted her shoulder and left her standing there.

‘Lord?’

‘I’m right here.’

Just then, John came up. She pointed to their seats. They went in and sat down.

The worship team seemed energized by the crowd. They  led the congregation through, My Redeemer Lives, Amazing Grace, and Rock of Ages. It was a good thing the worship team was in top form, Minnie thought, as even she could hear that a good portion of the congregation was not familiar with the songs. 

Minnie Goes to Heaven (79)

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The week before the service the secretary from the church phoned to say they were putting up a few posters around town to advertise the service. Did she have a title for her testimonial? Minnie was about to say she would have to  think about that and how soon did they have to know, when she heard, ‘Heaven is a Beautiful Place.’ 
“Heaven is a beautiful place,” she said.

“That’s the last detail,” the secretary said. “We’ll get those printed this afternoon and have them ready for the youth group to put up around town this evening.”

Minnie wondered what Pastor Peters would think? She was pretty sure he believed she hadn’t been anywhere near heaven, or hell. She had simply been in a coma.

As the day approached Minnie mulled over different openings for her testimonial. She couldn’t settle on anything, but in her spirit she kept hearing, ‘follow my direction.’ When the day finally came, she didn’t have even an opening line. ‘Lord, the service is this evening and I don’t know what I am saying.’

‘But, I do.’ That would have to be enough for Minnie.

Her friend Nan called. “Hey you, I saw the posters, I’m coming to the service tonight and most of the ladies from the cookie exchange are too.” On Saturday, several had heard Alvin, the local radio host, carry on about the event. “Alvin saw the posters and actually said on the radio he would be going to hear you,” Nan said.

Now Minnie had something to worry about. But she didn’t. ‘Lord, you better speak clearly tonight.’

She saw the Lord smiling at her. 

Minnie Goes to Heaven (78)

(a novel continued)

For Minnie’s birthday toward the end of January, John and Minnie enjoyed a candlelight dinner at the Old Mill and watched Fiddler on the Roof at the local theater. When they got home there were phone messages from both the boys wishing her a happy birthday and one from Pastor Peters asking her to call him back. Nothing from Mary.

The next day when Minnie phoned Pastor Peters he was all business. He didn't mention her birthday. “I was thinking we could hold our praise service on the Sunday evening before Valentines’ Day,” he said. “Would you be able to give a testimony? Keep it light. Sing some praise songs. The worship team will come up with some appropriate hymns and I will close things off. We’ll keep it short, maybe an hour at the most.”

‘Lord, this better be your plan or I'm in big trouble,’ Minnie prayed in her spirit. 

“Do you want to see my testimony, before I give it?” she asked Pastor Peters. She knew he wouldn't want  to leave things to chance, but he surprised her, “I’ll trust you to keep your talk under twenty minutes.”

Since Minnie had zero experience with public speaking (a fact she didn't share with Pastor Peters), she was glad he didn't expect more than that. 

‘Lord, what do I say?’ she prayed.

‘Speak from your heart. I will direct you.’

‘Thanks for that.’ It struck Minnie once again that her way of life had changed dramatically since her accident. Worry had disappeared and prayer had taken over. Now she found her connection with the Lord completely essential. And, she was looking forward to giving a twenty minute testimonial. If she had been asked to do something like this a year ago, she would have found forty reasons to be somewhere else. 

Minnie Goes to Heaven (77)

(a novel continued)

 John and Minnie went to bed well before midnight on New Year’s Eve. “The old year doesn’t need us to help it leave,” John said. 
On New Year’s Day, the kids phoned to say “Happy New Year”—two of the kids phoned. Minnie and John hadn’t heard a word from Mary since Christmas.

Minnie resisted the temptation to worry. She prayed instead. In her spirit she heard the familiar, ‘Wait.’ John heard the same thing.  
“I’m thinking she might simply be biding her time,” John said.

“You do?” 

“Brandon is big on intimidation. Mary, the real Mary, was never one to be intimidated. If she knew she was right she always stood up for herself.”
“True.”
“I think she is beginning to recognize the lies.”

“What makes you so?”

“Just something she said in the truck on the way to the compound.”

“You didn’t mention this.”

“Well, it wasn’t anything big, but the Lord keeps bringing it back to me. When He does, it gives me hope.”

“So...?”

“In the truck, just before we got there, she said she hoped Brandon wasn’t around. Bill asked her why and she said, 'He’s moody.' As soon as she said it she clammed up. It was like she surprised herself with the criticism. We’ve never, ever heard even a hint from her that anyone in that place wasn't perfect.”