Afraid Of Heaven


By Phil Scovell



     I was 11 when my dad died.  If I heard it once, I heard it a
thousand times; "Well, Phil, I'm sure sorry about your dad but the
Lord took him home and he is in a far better place now."  I tried
smiling my replies but sometime tears came instead.  I couldn't
blame these Christian friends for saying what they did because it
was all they knew to say.  They branded me, unfortunately, with
pain and sorrow for literally decades with their well meaning
attempts at comforting remarks.

     Recently I was talking with a friend.  We had experienced
many prayer sessions together and in fact, he had been healed in
dozens of places.  He said, "Sometimes when I think about dying
and going to Heaven, I'm afraid.  Fear just seems to come up for
no reason."

     I told this brother in the Lord that I could understand that
perfectly.  Take my situation for example.  People, well meaning
people, tried their best to encourage a little 11 year old boy
concerning his father's sudden death.  With a little mental help,
and it wouldn't take much, I could have thought the following.

     "The Lord took my dad home.  Why would He, of all people,
take my dad away from me.  Doesn't he know I'm sad?  Doesn't He
know I'm afraid?  Doesn't He know I'm scared.  Doesn't the Lord
know my mother is hurting and crying and upset?  Why would He do
that to my mother.  She never hurt anybody.  I want my dad back
right now.  You mean I have to go to Heaven to ever see my dad
again?  So why don't I just go right now.  Maybe I could run out
into the busy street and get hit by a car so I could be with my
dad again."

     The truth is, these were likely many of my thoughts and from
praying with many others who have lost a parent when they were
very young, similar thoughts of fear and anger and even guilt
filled their little minds, too.  In my friend's case, here's what
happened.

     As we were talking one evening, he mentioned about being
afraid to go to Heaven yet he knew he was born again and wanted to
go to Heaven.  He confessed his spiritual and theological
confusion about this feeling of fear.  Using myself as an example,
I explained to my friend how easily it could have happened that a
lie was implanted in my thinking as in, "You have to die to go to
Heaven but death is scary," or, "Don't you want to go to be with
your daddy?  You know where the knives are.  Use one of those,"
or, "You don't want to go to Heaven because death is horrible and
that's the only way you'll ever get there."  Now, I hear someone
saying that no such thing is possible.  Then I challenge you to
come and sit with me in prayer sessions and hear it for yourself.
Yes, such lies do, and can, be implanted in the unsuspecting minds
of children during tragic experiences which the little minds
cannot comprehend.  From where do the lies come?  You get one
guess and I'll give you a hint.  It isn't God.

     As we talked, my friend said, "Hey, I'm getting healed as we
talk.  A memory about this very thing just came up as you
explained your situation to me."

     "What is it?" I asked.

     He said, "Well, I was about 5 or 6 years old and playing in
our front yard.  My mother came to the screen door, opened it, and
told me, with tears rolling down her face, that grandpa had just
died.  Then she closed the door and walked away crying."

     "What did you feel?" I asked.

     "Confused," he said right away.  "I could not understand how
people could be so sad if Heaven was such a wonderful place."

     I noted the reverse logic of his statement and knew it was no
childhood misconception.  "Lord Jesus," I said, "would you explain
this memory and let him see what you see?"

     The man began laughing.

     "What is so funny?" I asked.

     "I see a dark figure standing next to my mother.  Not quite
human but more of a shadow looking thing.  I can't tell if it has
something to do with me or if it was associated with my mother,"
he concluded.

     "It makes little difference," I said, "because we don't want
him around.  Do we?"

     "No, I sure don't," he said with finality.

     "Then, let's get rid of him," I suggested.

     My friend started laughing again.

     "What's so funny now?" I wanted to know.

     "The demon is shaking.  He is trembling all over and I can
tell he wants to leave but he can't yet.  It's like he is stuck in
place"

     We prayed a short prayer together, turning the unclean spirit
over to the True Lord Jesus Christ, and my friend then said,
"Well, he is still shaking but he is walking down the front steps
of the house, down the front sidewalk, opening the front gate,
closing the gate, and now he is walking down the sidewalk along
the street."  A couple of silent moments passed and my friend
said, "Well, he's gone now."

     My friend also then told me that as we prayed together, he
could hear the demon saying, "No, no, no," over and over.  I
explained to my friend that the truth is, demons are afraid of us
because of the authority in Christ we have.  Most Christians
normally feel and act just the opposite.  That is, we are afraid
of the demon but the real truth is how much they truly are afraid
of Christians.  I further explained that the Lord was keeping this
demon in place and not allowing him to leave on his own until we
commanded him to leave.  That's why the demon was shaking and he
was shaking from the second the Lord revealed to my friend why the
demon was there, which was, to implant fear and confusion
concerning Heaven in a little boy's mind.

     Where are you today in your relationship with the Lord?  Do
you walk in His authority, power, and dominion He has over the
darkness?  If you are still walking in fear, call me and let Jesus
begin His healing work in you.

Safe Place Fellowship
Phil Scovell
Denver, Colorado USA
Mountain Time Zone
www.safeplacefellowship.com