Heaven Is for Real: A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven

It's very rare that I find a book that I get so drawn into that I can sit and read it from start to finish in just one sitting.  I was checking out Busy Mommy's blog, when the title of her post "Heaven is for Real" jumped out at me.  She explained this book that she had just finished, Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back.  I just knew that I had to read it!

While I do consider myself religious and a true believer in God and heaven, I am not an avid church-goer.  I don't know all of the stories in the Bible and I sometimes wonder what really happens when you die.  Are there really angels with wings and loved ones who have passed before us?  Are there animals?  Is everyone the age that they were when they died here on Earth, or do you even have a human figure at all in heaven?  There are so many unanswered questions and so much curiosity when it comes to life after death.  But in this book, all of these questions and more are answered... by a 4-year-old boy who saw it all first hand.

When Colton Burpo was 3, he lied in the hospital, in what seemed to be his death-bed. His fragile, little body had endured five days of internal poisoning from a ruptured appendix.  Doctors didn't give the family any words of encouragement before his surgeries, for they were almost positive that it was too late to save him. It would take a miracle... which is exactly what happened.

I don't want to give away too many details of the book, but it is such an easy read and it's amazing to hear about this boys visit to heaven.  And one of his stories that touched me on a very personal level, actually bringing me to tears at one point when I was reading it, was the part where Colton tells his parents that he met his sister in heaven.  This confused them at first, since his older sister was very much alive and well and definitely not in heaven.  But then they realized that the sister he was referring to, was the baby that they had miscarried before Colton was born.  They had never told him of this loss and they never did find out the sex of their departed baby since she had only been two months along.  I myself lost a baby during a pregnancy and have wondered if I would ever see him again in heaven one day.  This was such an inspirational story and made me that much more of a believer.

"A beautifully written glimpse into heaven that will encourage those who doubt and thrill those who believe."  -Ron Hall (coauthor, Same Kind of Different as Me)


If you choose to read this book, which I definitely recommend, feel free to share with me your thoughts on it and your reaction to Colton's story.