Faith and Fact collided like atoms in an atomic accelerator
to form a new reality for me.
It was like going from believing the earth to be flat to it
being a sphere.
James demonstrates that the soul survives the dimensions of
time and space.
Soul Survivor is that story-period!!
As a Christian the story challenged my faith in every way
that faith can be challenged -- the journey of discovery
was a fearful one -- the destination of fact affirmed it.
Soul Survivor suggests the answer to our salvation and
redemption that Christians chase throughout this life on
earth. Other than the acceptance of Jesus Christ as my
Savior -- this experience is the most profound of my life.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Bruce had staged a fighting retreat from the wild
conjectures over the meaning of his son's nightmares. He
had dug in and insisted that, whatever they were, they were
not proof of a past life. Yet, he had lost the battle over
the name, Natoma Bay -- it was an American ship, not
Japanese. Jack Larson turned out to be a real person who
flew off of a real aircraft carrier. The knowledge his son
had of airplanes and flying was uncanny; the battles in the
Pacific were real and the veterans vouched for the details.
Finally, he had to accept that James Huston was the pilot
who was killed in his son's horrific nightmares.
Still, he had held out over the fact that James insisted
that he flew a Corsair in the war and no Corsairs were
reported on Natoma Bay. And now that last bunker had
fallen. He had the picture of James Huston standing in
front of a Corsair.
He was starting to believe in something beyond reason.
I was baptized and raised as a Methodist. I grew up going
to church every Sunday with my mother and sister. My father
had very little to do with church. Church is a place that
makes me feel comfortable, safe, welcome.
In college, my attendance slipped, but I went to church
with friends of different denominations -- to see what they
were like. I went to Buddhist Temples, Catholic cathedrals,
Lutheran, Pentacostal, Episcopalian . . . most of the other
Protestant churches. I even went to Synagogues.
But as I matured, I became connected to the Evangelical
Christian movement, eventually finding myself involved with
a Full Gospel Christian Businessman's Fellowship.
We met every two weeks for Bible study, discussion and
trying to assimilate the Word into our lives. It was a
dramatic journey. I studied the Bible intensely. The Holy
Spirit was demonstrated for me in praying in Tongues, Faith
Healing and what we call Discernment.
I have witnessed Healings that I know were genuine.
I have personally realized the true power of Prayer. I
prayed for a second chance after my first marriage failed
because I was spiritually lost. I prayed for a wife with
green eyes -- and one who was Asian -- and my second wife,
Dre, has green eyes and her mother is one half Philippino.
Suffice to say that I feel I am a developed Christian on a
continuous path of spiritual growth.
If James' nightmares were truly a manifestation of a past
life -- a proof of reincarnation -- then, as I saw it, it
would threaten the Biblical promise of Salvation. If the
immortal soul can randomly transfer from person to person,
generation to generation, then what does that imply for the
Christian orthodoxy of Redemption?What happens on Judgment
Day if the immortal soul is handed off like that? It goes
against the Evangelical teaching of rebirth through a
spiritually transformed personal life through Jesus Christ.
The impact of James's story on my spiritual well-
being . . . well, it felt like spiritual warfare. My
purpose for disproving what was happening to my son was to
establish that this was all a coincidence -- as
astronomically remote as that possibility seems.
Of course, I was drawn into this by setting up these tests,
establishing questions that had to be answered, all the
while, I was getting closer and closer to something . . .
dangerous . . . it was like putting my hand in a fire . . .
¹
One may put their hand into a fire and in time it would
heal -- but ferreting out answers that could threaten a
complete belief system was scary.
I was traveling a strange road lost in the fog searching
for an unknown destination. The questions were simple --
but the answers could destroy my lifelong beliefs and
threaten my salvation. During the journey there were plenty
of times I wanted to stop -- but a voice of compulsion
drove me forward. My effort centered on my love and concern
for my son. When I first encountered the full force of his
nightmares a movie "The Exorcist" hit me square in the
face.
James might be demon possessed! With every step of
validation about what he told us the fog began to lift and
the destination became clearly visible.
James had experienced a past life and/or reincarnation had
occurred -- the exact conclusion I did not want to accept.
It took time as I measured the fruit that this tree of
experience produced.
In the end Faith and Fact collided like atoms in an atomic
accelerator to form a new reality. It was like going from
believing the earth to be flat to it being a sphere. James
demonstrated the soul survives the dimensions of time and
space.
As a Christian the story challenged my faith in every way
that faith can be challenged. "Soul Survivor" suggests the
answer to our yearning for salvation and redemption that
Christians chase throughout their life on earth. Other than
the acceptance of Jesus Christ as my Savior -- this
experience is the most profound of my life. "Soul Survivor"
is that story-period!! It left me with many unanswered
questions that involve how and why.