HELL

[apostolee]

Anyone ever dream or experienced hell?

I ask this because I have. Here's my story:

It was a dream. I didn't die and go there so sorry to disappoint. You see, I'm native american. Before I came to believe in Jesus, I was practicing my peoples culture (sweat lodges, smudging, sun dance, etc.) It was during the summer months, days after I participated in a sweat lodge. I was staying with a friend at the time, who also was involved in such ways. I was in the basement in a extra room having a nap (it was during the day time).

The dream started out with the knowledge that I had died. I didn't know how I died, but I just knew I was dead. Beside me also, was my mother who was in the same boat as me. We were holding hands. We were outside. It was raining, cloudy and gloomy looking. We were on our backs suspended in the air. We were floating towards the clouds. I thought of heaven. Why, when our people don't believe in a heaven or hell? I don't know but that was my thought. Maybe from TV, I don't know. But the emotions running through my soul were pure ECSTACY and JOY. During this dream, my mother and I didn't conversate. As we were nearing the clouds, our ascent started to slow. By the time we reached the clouds, like hitting a ceiling, we couldn't get through. All those previous emotions disappeared and were replaced with DOUBT. Next thing I know, we're slowly DESCENDING, in the same fashion that we went up. We turned as we neared the ground, and by now, the emotions were FEAR and DREAD. I knew where we were going. HELL. Why again? Again, I don't know. We touched ground. My mother started easing into the rocky ground. I started crying. I held onto my mothers hands, trying to prevent her from going through. But she soon disappeared out of sight and I too, than, started to melt through the earth. My emotions were FEAR, DREAD and TERROR now. At their max that I ever felt it to this day. It went black. Next thing I know, I open up to a chamber. Like a cave. A gigantic, monstrous cavern. It was dark but there was some visibility. In the middle of the cave, was a giant fire that filled the cavern. I'll say pit because on both sides were cliffs that rose up at a 90 degree angle. Rocky looking. But the fire filled with me HORROR. So add to the list of emotions that I'm feeling now. FEAR, DREAD, TERROR, HORROR. Again, to the max I ever felt them in my life, even till now. Emotions I never ever want to experience again. I can't emphasize enough how I felt at that time but do believe. Oddly, I experience no feeling during this ordeal. No pain. No feeling of touch. Just emotion. The fire that was in that pit was moving. Moving so much that it looked almost like a tornado whooshing around in the middle. I didn't see anybody. I don't know what happened to my mother but she was the least on my mind at that time. I was worried about myself and being there. I didn't see this very long. Must've been like 4 seconds of all this when I woke up.

I jumped out of bed and felt like my heart was going to explode out of my chest, the emotions I felt in that dream were still present but with it, relief. What a relief! I didn't know what to do. I had tears on my cheeks and was pacing back and forth in that basement up to 20 minutes of uncertainty. I wanted to find a church, but didn't know where or how. I didn't want to find my medicine man (like a pastor). I just knew he couldn't help me. But after an hour of this, I started to calm down. Telling myself, it was just a dream. But dang, WHAT A DREAM!

A few days later, my medicine man (i'll call shaman) showed up to have coffee with my friends mother. I waited until they were done before I sat down at the table and told him my story. He looked at me in doubt and said, "we don't believe in heaven or hell". He said, "Your dream is telling you that you are having doubts about our ways and questioning christianity." That was all that was said. I didn't say anything, just nodded and went my way. I thought, you may not believe in heaven or hell old man, but I sure do now. I never participated with him and those ways ever again. But I neither did go looking for Christ either. I just stopped my spiritual quest. Some years later, I got the Baptized in Jesus's name and received the gift of the Holy Ghost. But that's another story I'll leave in the testimony area one day.